Team:FSU/Collaborations

Collaborations

Table Setting

We were fortunate enough to be invited to participate in a Georgia team meet-up. Pictured are the FSU, Georgia State, and Lambert teams.

Georgia State University


Over the Summer, we were fortunate enough to be invited to participate in a bootcamp-styled meet-up with other teams hosted by Georgia State University in Atlanta. To start the bootcamp, the teams participated in a speed-dating ice breaker, in which two people from different teams pitched their project to each other. After speaking to a few other people, whoever recited another team’s pitch the best received a price. This allowed the teams to learn about each other’s work and served as a fantastic way for members to become more familiar with reciting their project as efficiently as possible within a limited time.

Table Setting

Team Lead Roderick Meyer and Create Member Blessing Nkembo getting ready to present FSU’s project at the Georgia State Meet-up.

Later in the bootcamp, each team got the chance to present their project in the fashion of the iGEM Giant Jamboree. At the end, the teams had the opportunity to answer questions and receive candid feedback on the presentation. At the meeting, were advisors for the GSU team and the Lambert High School team, some of which are current iGEM judges and committee members. The feedback our team received on our presentation was highly appreciated and incorporated fully into our project.


Table Setting

Uninfected psyllid collected from UF | IFAS Quincy Division that were sent to the BioTech Without Borders team for their research. The psyllid were frozen, soaked in 95% Ethanol, and drained before shipping.

BioTech Without Borders


In early Fall, our team was contacted by Craig Trester, the lab manager for a community biology laboratory in New York City by the name of Biotech Without Borders. Craig explained that the lab was host to a high school iGEM team also working on Citrus Greening/HLB. Through discussions of collaborations, we were in contact with Dr. Ellen Jorgensen, the high school team’s primary investigator who asked if we would be able to obtain uninfected, dead psyllid for her team. Since one of our team members is a research assistant at the UF | IFAS Satellite Campus in Quincy, Florida, we were able to obtain the psyllid and ship them out to the high school team. Dr. Jorgensen explained that with the psyllid, they will extract the DNA to use for their RNA interference studies in which they hope to target several psyllid genes rendering them unable to propagate.



FLOEMA, The Antimicrobial Peptide Cocktail Designed to Save Florida's Citrus