Team:USP-Brazil/Software
Rediscovering bioproduction
genSwitch is a genetic circuit able to make E.coli recognize blue led light and switch between two different states of genetic activation
What is bioproduction?
Bioproduction is a process used in industries that generates useful products through microorganisms. The most common inductor used in bioproduction are chemical compounds (like IPTG and arabinose) that are, not only expensive, but also lacks fine control of induction. Our goal is to built a genetic circuit that can switch between two different states of activation with just a single input of blue led light. The circuit was built in E.coli and works based on inhibition handles and recombinases that can invert the promoter region according to the presence and absence of the same type of blue light. In addition, fluorescent proteins such as GFP, RFP and YFP function as outps for our circuit. We also compared the efficiency between chemical induced promotors and light-induced ones by evaluating strength and lack. Finally, with our circuit, bioproduction can become more practical, controlled and economical.
Why use light?
Light is a fine, precise inductor, as the specificity of the signal is in the amissor, the wavelength and intensity, and in the receptor, in our case, a protein, that recognize a specific wavelength ortogonali. Besides that, light can be activated instantaneously, simply by turning on it’s source. To stop the induction, it’s not necessary to change the culture media or wash the culture, a process that can make some bioproduction impossible. Using light opens new possibilities for this industry.
Why make a switch?
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Software
Best Software Tool Special Prize
Regardless of the topic, iGEM projects often create or adapt computational tools to move the project forward. Because they are born out of a direct practical need, these software tools (or new computational methods) can be surprisingly useful for other teams. Without necessarily being big or complex, they can make the crucial difference to a project's success. This award tries to find and honor such "nuggets" of computational work.
To compete for the Best Software Tool prize, please describe your work on this page and also fill out the description on the judging form.
To be eligible, your software has to be documented and made available under an OSI approved open source license. You must also delete the alert box on the top of this page to be eligible for this prize.
Inspiration
Here are a few examples from previous teams: