Team:iBowu-China/Judging
On the journey of approaching successful experimental results and human practices activities, we have expanded our project to a more comprehensive and inclusive scale, where benefits to the society are maximized. A wide variety of activities have been done even if they are not required by the judging form criterion, as we always believe the project itself is to deliver positive impacts to various stakeholders, and the society as a whole. This has made our project significant and worthwhile.
1. Registration and Giant Jamboree Attendance
2. Competition Deliverables
3. Attributions
4.Project Inspiration and Description
5.Characterization
We have added quantitative experimental characterization data to BBa_C0062 and BBa_R0062 .
1.Validated Part
We have designed three new parts related to our project works and documented the characterization on Part's Registry. BBa_K3225014 BBa_K3225015 BBa_K3225003
2.Collaboration
3.Human Practices
Integrated Human Practices
The interaction between the product and society runs through our human practices. We bridged our project with the society starting with preliminary works including writing literature review, market research and interview for our project, which inspired us to focus on potato soft rot and engineered E.coli to inhibit Erwinia Carotovora growth(first-generation product); To optimize our product, we collected different opinions from general public, farmers, experts and regulators through questionnaires, supermarket interview, discussions with various professors and interview with legal counsellors. We found that most of them couldn’t accept our first-generation product because of biosecurity risks. To solve this problem, we adopted an interviewer's suggestion to integrate cell-free systems into our projects(second-generation product). When we generated the functional cell-free products in the lab, we contacted some investors in order to promote the products to more people. The investor directly pointed out that the cost is too high. We had to redesign the genetic circuits to minimize the materials used (third-generation product).
Education and Public Engagement
Mutual learning and engagement are considered essential. Driven by the desire of solving social issues relating to our projects, we arranged various activities and tried to engage as many people in synthetic biology as possible. We divided public engagement into four parts, and target groups of our project including children, researchers, farmers, and the general public respectively. For the children group, we held an interactive lecture at Peking Primary School on synthetic biology to provide them with opportunities to learn about cutting-edge technologies. The children seldom had access to relevant knowledge, and this learning experience was very valuable to them. We believed this lecture would encourage them go further in the journey of science. To advocate the importance of application of synthetic biology in agriculture, we presented at the 3M international Nano conference and showed our ideas to the professors in different fields, and they expressed strong interests in our innovative cell-free system approach. Furthermore, we have produced a handbook for farmers to raise their awareness of the appropriate uses of chemical pesticides. Moreover, to engage the general public, we created our own potato recipe booklet to publicize benefits of eating potatoes, meanwhile, we also introduced some knowledge about synthetic biology to them. In addition, we joined a charity related to potato sales, which funds for children’s education in Daliang mountain.
Model
In our project, we hope to detect the type and density of pathogenic bacteria by detecting AHL concentration in the cell-free synthetic test paper. To achieve this goal, we designed a simple mathematical model based on the differential equations that describe the biochemical processes of the cell-free system. To optimize the model, we used GFP, which is easier to quantify, as a reporter to measure the transcriptional level of promoter lux (AHL-biosensor) with different concentrations of AHL and different copies of the template. With these data, we optimized model parameters and obtained the final model. The model can be used to predict the minimum detection concentration of AHL and optimize the DNA content. In addition, we have developed a modeling software, which can use a given system description file to calculate the dynamic behavior of the system, which will help synthetic biologists to improve their system.
Entrepreneurship
Based on our soft rot bio-control product, the entrepreneurship team of 2019 iBowu-China focuses on the concept of future farming. Since the environmental crisis is one of the major concerns of the modern world, our team believes that environmentally friendly herbicides and pesticides will be the key to future farming. The entrepreneurship team of iBowu-China analyzes and composes a business plan around the environmental advantages to commercialize this soft rot bio-control product. Compared to other chemical herbicides and pesticides, our product has inestimable potentials on preventing plant diseases that benefit both the environment and the farmer. One of the vital methods, cell-free technology, enables modifications to the product's properties so that the product can solve other agricultural problems. The entrepreneurship team proposes the business plan that covers not only the advantages of the product but also establishes a path to achieve our vision for future farming.
Software
To simplify the model of the product, the modeling team of iBowu-China designed software for the modeling process. The software is written with C + + and QT5 framework, which can read the circuit design description file in XML file format, build the dynamic model (ordinary differential equations) of the circuit based on the file, and draw the dynamic curve of the model. The software provides a simple graphical interface. after building the model, users can also modify the model parameters through the input boxes and buttons in the interface. Using this software, synthetic biologists can understand the dynamic behavior of the designed system more intuitively, so that they can focus more on designing.
Best New Basic Part
BBa_K3225003
Best New Composite Part
BBa_K3225015