Difference between revisions of "Team:Georgia State/Description"

Line 1: Line 1:
−
{{Georgia_State}}
+
{{Georgia_State/sand}}
−
<html>
+
<html lang="en">
  
 +
<head>
 +
    <meta charset="UTF-8">
 +
    <meta name="description" content="">
 +
    <meta http-equiv="X-UA-Compatible" content="IE=edge">
 +
    <meta name="viewport" content="width=device-width, initial-scale=1, shrink-to-fit=no">
  
 +
    <!-- Title -->
 +
    <title>GSU iGEM</title>
  
−
<div class="clear"></div>
+
    <!-- Favicon -->
 +
    <link rel="icon" href="./img/core-img/favicon.ico">
  
−
<div class="column full_size">
+
−
<h1>Project Inspiration and Description </h1>
+
</head>
−
<h3>NEW: Bronze Medal Criterion #4</h3>
+
−
<p> The inspiration behind our project was the Netflix documentary “Chasing Coral.”
+
  
−
At a glance we want to transform the microalgal symbiote of coral, Symbiodinium to overcome the overarching issue of coral bleaching. We first did some research into seeing what causes corals to bleach and consequently die off. As it turns out, there isn’t just one reason but coral bleaching is a result of a multitude of different anthropogenic dependent environmental issues. But before we can even think about what gene we’d like to introduce to combat coral bleaching, we need to look to see if there have previously been any attempts to transform Symbiodinium. We found that there have been two successful transformations of symbiodinium, one in 1998 and another in 2015 however after transformation the cells were left unable to reproduce or photosynthesize. We reached out to the lab that successfully transformed symbiodinium in 2015 and asked them if we could use their plasmid construct pCB302-gfp-MBD, even though it was not optimized to be used in a dinoflagellate. We found another paper “Nuclear gene transformation in a dinoflagellate” where they assembled a dinoflagellate optimized plasmid (DinoIII) and successfully transformed it into Oxyhrris marina. We plan to use their plasmid and replace the green fluorescent protein gene with a codon optimized red fluorescent protein gene. In the lab we plan to culture Oxyhrris marina (a heterotrophic dinoflagellate), Symbiodinium microadriaticum, and Dunaliella tertiolecta (the food source for O. marina). Then we will harvest the Symbiodinium cells and attempt to repeat the transformation done in “Heterologous DNA Uptake in Cultured Symbiodinium spp. Aided by Agrobacterium tumefaciens” with equivalent or better transformation efficiency to generate a successful transformation protocol for Symbiodinium. Once we have created the DinoIII plasmid with codon optimized rfp, we will transform it into Symbiodinium as well. </p>
+
<body>
 +
 
 +
<!-- Preloader -->
 +
    <div id="preloader">
 +
        <div class="loader"></div>
 +
    </div>
 +
    <!-- /Preloader -->
 +
 
 +
        <!-- Main Header Start -->
 +
        <div class="main-header-area">
 +
            <div class="classy-nav-container breakpoint-off">
 +
                <div class="container">
 +
                    <!-- Classy Menu -->
 +
                    <nav class="classy-navbar justify-content-between" id="akameNav">
  
−
</div>
+
                        <!-- Logo -->
 +
                        <a class="nav-brand" href="index.html"><img src="./img/core-img/logo.png" alt=""></a>
  
 +
                        <!-- Navbar Toggler -->
 +
                        <div class="classy-navbar-toggler">
 +
                            <span class="navbarToggler"><span></span><span></span><span></span></span>
 +
                        </div>
  
 +
                        <!-- Menu -->
 +
                        <div class="classy-menu">
 +
                            <!-- Menu Close Button -->
 +
                            <div class="classycloseIcon">
 +
                                <div class="cross-wrap"><span class="top"></span><span class="bottom"></span></div>
 +
                            </div>
 +
                            <!-- Nav Start -->
 +
                            <div class="classynav">
 +
                                <ul id="nav">
 +
                                    <li><a href="./index.html">Home</a></li>
 +
                                    <li><a href="./team.html">Team</a>
 +
<ul class="dropdown">
 +
    <li><a href="./portfolio.html">- Team Members</a></li>
 +
    <li><a href="./collaborations.html">- Collaborations</a></li>
 +
    <li><a href="./collaborations.html">- Attributions</a></li>
 +
</ul>
 +
    </li>
 +
    <li><a href="#">Project</a>
 +
                                        <ul class="dropdown">
 +
                                            <li class="active"><a href="./description.html">- Description</a></li>
 +
                                            <li><a href="./about.html">- Design</a></li>
 +
                                            <li><a href="./service.html">- Notebook</a></li>
 +
                                            <li><a href="./portfolio.html">- Protocols</a></li>
 +
                                            <li><a href="./blog.html">- Results</a></li>
 +
                                            <li><a href="./single-blog.html">- Hardware</a></li>
 +
                                     
 +
                                        </ul>
 +
                                    </li>
 +
                                    <li><a href="./service.html">Parts</a></li>
 +
                                    <li><a href="#">Human Practices</a>
 +
<ul class="dropdown">
 +
    <li><a href="./HP.html">- Human Practices</a></li>
 +
    <li><a href="#">- Public Engagement</a></li>
 +
</ul>
 +
                                    <li><a href="./blog.html">Safety</a></li>
 +
                                    <li><a href="./contact.html">Judging Form</a></li>
 +
                               
  
 +
                                                          </div>
 +
                            <!-- Nav End -->
 +
                        </div>
 +
                    </nav>
 +
                </div>
 +
            </div>
 +
        </div>
 +
    </header>
 +
    <!-- Header Area End -->
  
 +
    <!-- Breadcrumb Area Start -->
 +
    <section class="breadcrumb-area section-padding-80">
 +
        <div class="container">
 +
            <div class="row">
 +
                <div class="col-12">
 +
                    <div class="breadcrumb-content">
 +
                        <h2>Creating Synbio-dinium</h2>
 +
                        <nav aria-label="breadcrumb">
 +
                            <ol class="breadcrumb">
 +
                                <li class="breadcrumb-item"><a href="index.html"><i class="icon_house_alt"></i> Home</a></li>
 +
                                <li class="breadcrumb-item active" aria-current="page">Project Description</li>
 +
                            </ol>
 +
                        </nav>
 +
                    </div>
 +
                </div>
 +
            </div>
 +
        </div>
 +
    </section>
 +
    <!-- Breadcrumb Area End -->
  
 +
    <!-- Service Area Start -->
 +
    <section class="akame-service-area">
  
 +
        <!-- Single Service Item -->
 +
        <div class="single--service--item d-flex flex-wrap align-items-center">
 +
            <!-- Service Content -->
 +
            <div class="service-content">
 +
                <div class="service-text">
 +
                    <h2>The Problem</h2>
 +
                    Coral bleaching, the loss of algal symbionts necessary for the survival of cnidarian reef organisms, is a disastrous environmental issue with global consequences. No single factor has been established as the cause of this catastrophe, but there are a multitude of suspects including increased greenhouse gas emissions and rising seawater temperatures.
 +
                </div>
 +
            </div>
 +
            <!-- Service Thumbnail -->
 +
            <div class="service-thumbnail bg-img jarallax" style="background-image: url(img/bg-img/30.png);"></div>
 +
        </div>
  
 +
        <!-- Single Service Item -->
 +
        <div class="single--service--item bg-gray odd-item d-flex flex-wrap align-items-center">
 +
            <!-- Service Thumbnail -->
 +
            <div class="service-thumbnail bg-img jarallax" style="background-image: url(img/bg-img/31.png);"></div>
  
 +
            <!-- Service Content -->
 +
            <div class="service-content">
 +
                <div class="service-text">
 +
                    <h2>The Solution</h2>
 +
                    Whatever the cause, we believe a solution may involve genetically modifying the symbiotic microalgae, Symbiodinium, that live within corals.
 +
<div class="row-align-center"><div class="col-6"><img src="img/bg-img/symbio5.png"></div></div>
 +
                </div>
 +
            </div>
 +
        </div>
  
−
<div class="column third_size">
+
        <!-- Single Service Item -->
−
<h3>References</h3>
+
        <div class="single--service--item d-flex flex-wrap align-items-center">
−
<p>Literature
+
            <!-- Service Content -->
−
 
+
            <div class="service-content">
−
Heterologous DNA Uptake in Cultured Symbiodinium spp. Aided by Agrobacterium tumefaciens
+
                <div class="service-text">
−
DOI:10.1371/journal.pone.0132693
+
                    <h2>The Plan</h2>
 +
<div class="row">                  
 +
<div class="col-6">
 +
We are establishing both culturing and transformation protocols for these microalgae symbionts. We began by optimizing culturing techniques for Symbiodinium microadriaticum, Oxyrrhis marina (our model organism), and Dunaliella tertiolecta (the food source for O. marina).
 +
    </div>
 +
<div class="col-6">
 +
<img src="img/bg-img/3.png" height="200" width="200">
 +
</div>
 +
</div>
 +
To identify optimal algal growth conditions, we tested various factors such as growth media, light intensity, and temperature. We designed a codon optimized red fluorescent protein part that was cloned into a dinoflagellate-optimized expression plasmid (DinoIII)(Sprecher, et. al 2019) for transformation into our model organism as a proof of concept. In parallel, we are also attempting to replicate the only known successful transformation of Symbiodinium using an Agrobacterium tumefacien co-culture carrying a binary vector, pCB302-GFP-MBD (Ortiz-Matamoros et. al 2015), and designing/executing various electroporation protocols. A genomic analysis of clade D Symbiodinium, a clade associated with higher resistance to bleaching but diminished coral growth, will identify target genes related to bleaching resistance for transformation into the growth-favorable clade C of Symbiodinium. The corals will then uptake the modified host algae, increasing their resistance to bleaching.
 +
<img src="img/bg-img/symbio4.png">
 +
<p>Sprecher,B., Zhang,H. & Lin, S. (2019, April 9). Nuclear gene transformation in a dinoflagellate. doi: 10.1101/602821</p>
  
−
Nuclear gene transformation in a dinoflagellate
+
<p>Ortiz-Matamoros, M.F., Islas-Flores, T., Voigt, B., Menzel, D., Baluška, F. & Villanueva, M.A. (2015, July 13). Heterologous DNA Uptake in Cultured
−
doi: https://doi.org/10.1101/602821
+
Symbiodinium spp. Aided by Agrobacterium tumefaciens. doi:10.1371/journal. Pone.0132693
 
</p>
 
</p>
 +
                </div>
 +
            </div>
 +
            <!-- Service Thumbnail -->
 +
            <div class="service-thumbnail bg-img jarallax" style="background-image: url(img/bg-img/32.png);"></div>
 +
        </div>
  
−
</div>
+
    </section>
 +
    <!-- Service Area End -->
 +
 
 +
          <!-- Goodbye Area Start -->
 +
    <section class="akame-service-area">
 +
<div class="welcome-slides owl-carousel">
 +
            <!-- Single Welcome Slide -->
 +
                <div class="single-goodbye-slide bg-img" style="background-image: url(img/bg-img/1.png);">
 +
                </div>
 +
        </div>
 +
 
 +
    </section>
 +
    <!-- Goodbye Area End -->
 +
    <!-- Footer Area Start -->
 +
    <footer class="footer-area section-padding-80-0">
 +
        <div class="container">
 +
            <div class="row justify-content-between">
 +
 
 +
                <!-- Single Footer Widget -->
 +
                <div class="col-12 col-sm-6 col-md-4">
 +
                    <div class="single-footer-widget mb-80">
 +
                        <!-- Footer Logo -->
 +
                        <a href="#" class="footer-logo"><img src="img/core-img/logo.png" alt=""></a>
 +
 
 +
                        <!-- Copywrite Text -->
 +
                        <div class="copywrite-text">
 +
                            <p> <!-- Link back to Colorlib can't be removed. Template is licensed under CC BY 3.0. -->
 +
Copyright &copy;<script>document.write(new Date().getFullYear());</script> All rights reserved | This template is made with <i class="fa fa-heart-o" aria-hidden="true"></i> by <a href="https://colorlib.com" target="_blank">Colorlib</a> | Modified by GSU iGEM
 +
<!-- Link back to Colorlib can't be removed. Template is licensed under CC BY 3.0. --></p>
 +
                        </div>
 +
                    </div>
 +
                </div>
 +
 
 +
                <!-- Single Footer Widget -->
 +
                <div class="col-12 col-sm-6 col-md-4 col-xl-3">
 +
                    <div class="single-footer-widget">
 +
<div class="container">
 +
                      <img src="img/bg-img/Coral13 color.png" alt="">
 +
</div>
 +
 
 +
                                             
 +
                    </div>
 +
                </div>
 +
 
 +
                <!-- Single Footer Widget -->
 +
                <div class="col-12 col-md-4 col-xl-3">
 +
                    <div class="single-footer-widget mb-80">
  
 +
                        <!-- Widget Title -->
 +
                        <h4 class="widget-title">Contact Us</h4>
  
 +
                        <!-- Contact Address -->
 +
                        <div class="contact-address">
 +
                            <p>Tel: (+1) 404 413 5344</p>
 +
                            <p>E-mail: igemgsu@gmail.com</p>
 +
                            <p>Address: iGEM 50 Decatur St SE, Atlanta GA 30303<p>
 +
                        </div>
 +
<!-- Social Info -->
 +
                        <div class="social-info">
 +
                            <a href="https//www.facebook.com/GSUiGEM/" class="facebook"><i class="fa fa-facebook"></i></a>
 +
                            <a href="https://twitter.com/GSUiGEM" class="twitter"><i class="fa fa-twitter"></i></a>
 +
                            <a href="#" class="instagram"><i class="fa fa-instagram"></i></a>
 +
                        </div>
 +
                    </div>
 +
                </div>
  
 +
            </div>
 +
        </div>
 +
    </footer>
 +
    <!-- Footer Area End -->
  
 +
    <!-- All JS Files -->
 +
    <!-- jQuery -->
 +
    <script src="js/jquery.min.js"></script>
 +
    <!-- Popper -->
 +
    <script src="js/popper.min.js"></script>
 +
    <!-- Bootstrap -->
 +
    <script src="js/bootstrap.min.js"></script>
 +
    <!-- All Plugins -->
 +
    <script src="js/akame.bundle.js"></script>
 +
    <!-- Active -->
 +
    <script src="js/default-assets/active.js"></script>
  
 +
</body>
  
 
</html>
 
</html>

Revision as of 02:05, 4 October 2019

GSU iGEM

Creating Synbio-dinium

The Problem

Coral bleaching, the loss of algal symbionts necessary for the survival of cnidarian reef organisms, is a disastrous environmental issue with global consequences. No single factor has been established as the cause of this catastrophe, but there are a multitude of suspects including increased greenhouse gas emissions and rising seawater temperatures.

The Solution

Whatever the cause, we believe a solution may involve genetically modifying the symbiotic microalgae, Symbiodinium, that live within corals.

The Plan

We are establishing both culturing and transformation protocols for these microalgae symbionts. We began by optimizing culturing techniques for Symbiodinium microadriaticum, Oxyrrhis marina (our model organism), and Dunaliella tertiolecta (the food source for O. marina).
To identify optimal algal growth conditions, we tested various factors such as growth media, light intensity, and temperature. We designed a codon optimized red fluorescent protein part that was cloned into a dinoflagellate-optimized expression plasmid (DinoIII)(Sprecher, et. al 2019) for transformation into our model organism as a proof of concept. In parallel, we are also attempting to replicate the only known successful transformation of Symbiodinium using an Agrobacterium tumefacien co-culture carrying a binary vector, pCB302-GFP-MBD (Ortiz-Matamoros et. al 2015), and designing/executing various electroporation protocols. A genomic analysis of clade D Symbiodinium, a clade associated with higher resistance to bleaching but diminished coral growth, will identify target genes related to bleaching resistance for transformation into the growth-favorable clade C of Symbiodinium. The corals will then uptake the modified host algae, increasing their resistance to bleaching.

Sprecher,B., Zhang,H. & Lin, S. (2019, April 9). Nuclear gene transformation in a dinoflagellate. doi: 10.1101/602821

Ortiz-Matamoros, M.F., Islas-Flores, T., Voigt, B., Menzel, D., Baluška, F. & Villanueva, M.A. (2015, July 13). Heterologous DNA Uptake in Cultured Symbiodinium spp. Aided by Agrobacterium tumefaciens. doi:10.1371/journal. Pone.0132693

Copyright © All rights reserved | This template is made with by Colorlib | Modified by GSU iGEM

Contact Us

Tel: (+1) 404 413 5344

E-mail: igemgsu@gmail.com

Address: iGEM 50 Decatur St SE, Atlanta GA 30303