Team:Leiden/Public Engagement

iGEM Leiden | 2019

S.P.L.A.S.H.

Suckerin Polymer Layer to Achieve Sustainable Health

Experiments Notebook Safety
Team Attributions Collaborations
Human Practices Entrepreneurship Newsletter Education &
Public Engagement Sponsors
Description Demonstrate Model Parts Results

Education & Public Engagement

The Leiden 2019 iGEM team strived to make people more aware of the advantages of synthetic biology, as well as the associated ethical questions and limits. Our program was composed of two tracks: one for discussions and one for workshops. In various discussion events, the ethical questions that arise in the field of synthetic biology were confronted. As our discussion highlight, we organized a discussion evening, where we invited the public and a panel of experts to talk about the boundaries of synthetic biology.


For our workshop program, a series of workshops were designed for every age group to educate them about synthetic biology, starting with both adults and children and later targeting them separately. Our workshops were subdivided into four categories: DNA, fermentation, synthetic biology and microbial ecology. This way, we could set specific learning goals for the individual categories. With a lot of impressions and extensive feedback from earlier events, we capped of our program with an exhibition in Micropia, the world's only museum dedicated entirely to microbes.


We encourage other iGEM teams to get inspired by our educational set-up to appeal to a diverse public and try out some of the interactive workshops that we came up with!

DNA

DNA
We wanted to let people experience DNA. We focused on two learning goals: making people realize DNA is a fundamental building block of all organisms, and let them isolate their DNA to underline its importance in their own body.

Synthetic Biology

Synthetic Biology
We wanted to convey to people how synthetic biologists see microbes and how we can use them for applications. Specifically, we wanted to share the idea that we can introduce functionality into a microbe that fits our needs as an iGEM team, while still moving within safe environments.

Fermentation

Fermentation
Microorganisms form the essence of biotechnological research. Yet many people do not realize just how much fermentation is used for various products. We wanted to show the public where these products come from and how we use microorganisms for production by employing live yeast cells.

Microbial Ecology

Microbial Ecology
Just how many microbes are around us? In this category, we wanted to show the public a large variety of microorganisms in our direct environment and discuss their beneficial roles in ecology as well as for biotechnology.

Discussions


Public Debate

Many concerns have already been made clear in public opinion surveys, showing that citizens are skeptical of the benefits and the risks of genetically engineered organisms to individuals and society [1-3]. As the final event of our discussion program, we organized a public discussion evening on synthetic biology. We had already spoken with many people at earlier events, so we began to have a better understanding of the rights and beliefs of the communities joining our discussion. We focused on expanding the range of visitors from the non-academic environment as much as possible. Therefore, this discussion was held in Dutch.


For each discussion point, the presenter first showed videos explaining the relevant topics, after which we received a agree/disagree ratio to the topic and opened the discussion. Biotechnology experts Dr. Dennis Claessen, Professor Han de Winde and Marjolein Crooijmans took part as the panel. After sharing opinions we finished each section with another agree/disagree survey to see how the discussion influenced the public opinion. It became clear that the different viewpoints were not based on a sole truth, but these were personal, well-thought interpretations of difficult ethical questions. The different viewpoints and statements are combined into a discussion summary, which can be used as inspiration for future iGEM projects. You can find it here.

Natural History Museum

The Natural History Museum Rotterdam, with its large collection of squid species, was a nice opportunity to talk about our research involving the cephalopod suckerin protein. To make the event accessible for young and old, visitors were separated into two age groups. First, we gave a presentation to children about bacteria and DNA. We emphasized that bacteria are not dirty, but that they can have positive effects on the human body, such as food digestion. Second, we presented our research to an adult audience, followed by a discussion on ethical questions in biotechnology. It became clear that there were many concerns about the risks of genetically modified organisms to society. We used this initial input for our final event; the discussion evening on synthetic biology.

Ontdekkingsstation013

Our team went to Ontdekstation013, an interactive station where children from the age of 4 to 12 can participate in various science-related activities. Children are frequently underestimated and can understand more than people often think. The trick is, however, to find a way to streamline the explanation so they can understand it correctly. Since our target audience was relatively young, we found it difficult in the beginning to explain the concept of DNA. We decided to use a new approach using LEGO bricks: with only four types of bricks (as for nucleotides), you can already make countless objects, such as cars and airplanes (proteins and other molecules). This mutual learning experience was an huge success. Therefore we highly recommend future iGEM teams to use this approach definitely for younger children.

Biology on Tap

Since we also wanted to inform an academic public on synthetic biology and have feedback for our research, we presented our project during a ‘Biology on Tap’ event. This is an organization from Leiden University and Naturalis Biodiversity Center which hosts biology-related presentations in an informed way. The public questioned possible immune responses of the human body to the suckerin-based hydrogel. We implemented their suggestions into our project, such as the prevention of immunogenic responses and the prokaryotic production of suckerin instead of only heterologous eukaryotic production (see our human practices page).

Workshops


Micropia

The final event of our workshop program was our exhibition stand at Micropia during their 5th anniversary and the ‘Weekend of Science’. Micropia is the only museum in the world that is focused entirely on microbial life and its biotechnological application. This was a unique opportunity to engage with the public and explore, with approximately 1800 visitors, how we can use microbes for the production of biotechnological products. We simulated a biotechnological pipeline that allowed visitors to break down every step of the heterologous expression of a product in a bacterial host. In this way, the public could actively participate and experience biotechnology (Figure 1).


First, we showcased Escherichia coli bacteria that produced GFP and compared them with the wild-type strain using a UV-flashlight (1). Combined with an explanation that GFP origins from a jellyfish, we revealed the translatability of DNA between species. Next, we demonstrated the concept of protein purification in a microbe using column purification (2). Our mock protein, which was represented by tiny magnets, was added to an iron can, together with cell debris, in this case, paper and other disposables. Visitors and especially children were invited to shake the can for the magnets to stick to the walls. Then, we poured out the cell debris to be left with the pure protein.


Figure 1. Structure of the workshop, designed for the Micropia exhibition. By showing GFP-production in bacteria (1), protein purification using an iron can (2) and a real hydrogel formation of alginate and calcium lactate (3) visitors could comprehend the process of our project in an interactive manner.


To conclude our pipeline, we invited the visitors to put the purified protein to use and create their own hydrogel (3). We simulated this by using alginate and calcium lactate, both used in the food industry, and therefore safe for handling. While they were touching and experiencing the creation of the gel we explained our team ́s mission to use a similar gel to treat burn wounds. We let them apply their gel to a picture of a burn wound, which was appealing for both children and adults. Throughout the workshops, we received a lot of enthusiastic comments and praise from the public. Protocols for the experiments and detailed explanations can be found here.

World DNA Day

Our public engagement program started with the World DNA Day in Corpus, where we wanted to get an overview of the knowledge of different age groups and how to interact with them. Based on a program from the Leiden 2018 iGEM team, visitors could make drawings with naturally occurring bacteria showing various colors, that they could take home afterward. The children were very excited, while the parents were sometimes concerned about the pathological effects of bacteria. This was a nice opportunity to talk about the large diversity of microbes and the pathological effects of only a few harmful species. Our guidelines for future iGEM teams can be found here.

Herman Broereschool

With the gained experience from earlier workshops and our presentations at the Natural History Museum Rotterdam, where we divided the audience into two groups, we wanted to reach out to not-so-regular audience groups. We chose to embark on a more challenging audience to teach scientific subjects. The Herman Broerenschool is a school for children with special needs. We sent them on a quest to find the ‘dirtiest’ spot in the building to teach them that bacteria can be found everywhere. We implemented the successful ‘dirtiest spot’ experiment in our stand at the Museum Night on a larger scale and for a broader audience. The protocol for the ‘dirtiest spot’ can be found here.


The teacher thought the presentation was well adjusted to this target audience, which she thought was very well done due to the little experience we had working with special needs children. One of the children said afterward: ‘I thought it was very interesting and fun to draw with bacteria. We learned that some bacteria can be good for us, while others can cause illnesses. We also learned that DNA is important because this code tells you many things about yourself.’

Museum Night

Microbial life can be found everywhere; that is what we wanted to tell people during the Museum Night in Leiden. We organized a competition to see who could collect the most variety of microbial species in the Hortus Botanicus. This was done by letting everybody sample surfaces of their choice using a Q-tip, followed by culturing the microorganisms on agar plates. Some parents were concerned about the safety of microbes, which was an exciting opportunity to engage in a discussion about beneficial uses of bacteria, such as in waste treatment. People had very creative ideas about where they assumed the most microorganisms lived, and over one hundred people participated. Surprisingly, the winning plate was inoculated with microbes from the belly button!


A visitor told us: ‘My children and I were enthusiastic to search for the ‘dirtiest spot’. It made us think about microorganisms and the environments they thrive in. I found that it was an original idea of the students to start a dialogue with the public. The students at the information booth were passionate and friendly and explained the research they are doing very well.’

Werfpop

At the Werfpop festival, we wanted to explain fermentation as a fundamental part of our research. We fermented berry juice and a sucrose solution using yeast cells. We also brought a bottle of sucrose without yeast, so people could see and smell the difference. Visitors could observe the living yeast cells under the microscope. Many visitors were often not aware that yeast is used in the production of bread, beer, and other beverages. For our other experiment, we invited visitors to isolate their DNA. This activity was very popular and especially by children, some of which had never heard of DNA before. We implemented this workshop in our lab tours. The protocol for DNA isolation can be found here.

Labtours

As a reward for their financial contribution, our crowdfunding donors had the opportunity to visit our lab. We showed them all the important machines and techniques researchers are using in biotechnological research. Since the isolation of DNA was very successful at Werfpop, we implemented this experiment for a smaller, new group of people. With our lab tours, we involved our donors closely with our research, showing how their financial support contributed to the advancement in synthetic biology. We emphasized on all the lab material that was purchased with their help. One of our guests stated: ‘Thank you for the tour! It was an instructive and pleasant day. I especially liked your motivation and helpfulness to each other.’

Tips for future iGEM teams


Our team thinks it is of great importance that iGEM teams should be involved in current discussions on synthetic biology. We consider our events and interactions with the public to be successful, and we received much positive and some constructive criticism throughout. This feedback was a basis for designing the next event. We strongly suggest future iGEM teams to use our designed methods for the various age groups to educate them about synthetic biology, first starting with both adults and children and later targeting them separately. This enabled us to get a feeling about the focus relevant to each age group, making it easier to explain the context, rationale and prior work of your public engagement program. Besides, we suggest future iGEM teams make surveys to improve their events. By having a standardized survey you can work with feedback from many individuals instead of only a selection. Most importantly, we encourage future iGEM teams to use our protocols for different workshops.

In the News

Our research has become well-known in the Netherlands due to our societal relevance and the many activities we participated in. Various interviews on social media and the radio helped us to reach a bigger public. Members of our team were interviewed by the radio, television, and newspapers. Below you can find two highlights.

News

One highlight was our news item on NOSop3, a program of the Dutch national television which was broadcast on the radio and social media. Click on the picture to go to the video: https://nos.nl/op3/artikel/2289274-zo-moet-een-inktvis-helpen-om-brandwonden-te-genezen.html

Radio

Our project was also featured on Radio sleutelstad, where we talked about our research and the implications of current wound-healing therapies. Besides, we had an interesting discussion on synthetic biology and its implications for society. Click on the picture to go to the radio fragment:
https://soundcloud.com/sleutelstad/2019-04-24-maarten-lubbers-en-floor-stel-igem
https://soundcloud.com/sleutelstad/2019-09-25-maarten-lubbers-over-igem-leiden-2019

Blog

For Nemokennislink, our team was asked to write monthly blogs in Dutch. We embraced this idea, so we wrote about various aspects of our research. We mentioned how we came up with our project, how we used a bioreactor to produce our protein and also how we organized our discussion evening. You can find our blogposts here.

References

  1. Schmidt M., Ganguli-Mitra A., Torgersen H., Kelle A., Deplazes A., & Biller-Andorno N. (2009). A priority paper for the societal and ethical aspects of synthetic biology. Systems and Synthetic Biology, 3(1-4), 3-7.
  2. Weldon S., & Laycock D. (2009). Public opinion and biotechnological innovation. Policy and Society, 28(4), 315-325.
  3. Anderson J., Strelkowa N., Stan G., Douglas T., Savulescu J., Barahona M., & Papachristodoulou A. (2012). Engineering and ethical perspectives in synthetic biology. EMBO Reports, 13(7), 584-590.