Team:CAU China/Collaborations
Collaboration
Collaboration Within the Project
With LZU-CHINA
https://2021.igem.org/Team:LZU-CHINA/Collaborations
On July 13th, we had an offline discussion with guests from the team LZU-CHINA (which is very valuable during the pandemic!).
Together we discussed how to design the inner logic in our wet lab work. LZU-CHINA pointed out that we should tailor each experimental work to the Design-Build-Test-Learn engineering cycle iGEM requested, which is easier for others to understand and agree to our work. Also, they suggested that we can polish the project background by field surveys in regions with saline-alkaline soil.
Due to their suggestions, we re-designed the verification of the promoter PgsiB ,Patp2, P0864 and the toxin gene ndoA, to make it follow the Design-Build-Test-Learn cycle. Particularly, we decided to verify the function of ndoA by measurement of colony-forming units instead of OD600, thanks for LZU-CHINA’s advice. Also, though we can’t do field surveys due to COVID-19, we decided to get in contact with workers in soil restoration as additional background.
With XJTU-China
https://2021.igem.org/Team:XJTU-China/Collaborations
We collaborated with XJTU-China and helped each other mutually by several online discussions through August and September, and we developed a good relationship (even gift exchange!) after such a close cooperation.
Our projects both focused on amino-acids more or less this year. Coincidentally, the project of XJTU-China 2020 is about the soil restoration as well. The most valuable help we got from XJTU-China is the toxin gene ndoA they used and documented in 2020. XJTU-China offered us the methods they used in their verification experiments of ndoA and confirmed that ndoA does have a killing effect on Bacillus subtilis, which gave us great confidence of our verification experiments. Besides, they also advised us to change its start codon from “TTG” to “ATG” for higher expression and better killing effect, which inspired us for future work on our kill switch.
Moreover, XJTU-China offered useful tips on how to get in touch with companies, which encouraged us to contact the enterprise Sino Green Agri-Biotech later.
Meanwhile, we have helped XJTU-China as well. Considering their implementation is to put the hardware into ordinary families, we suggested inserting the gene circuits into the bacteria’s genome to prevent misuse of antibiotics by non-professionals.
With SZPT-CHINA
https://2021.igem.org/Team:SZPT-CHINA/Collaborations
On September 5th, we had an online exchange with SZPT-CHINA and after sharing our projects, we had a close discussion on the manufacture of engineered bacteriophages and a series of collaborations in human practice.
With geographical advantage, SZPT helped us to contact the Shenzhen AGB Company and acted as a bridge between us and the company, during which we gained a deeper understanding of the market and application of the bacterial agent as well as the existing relevant laws and regulations.
We have also helped their human practices by offering the contact information of the Dermatology Department in China-Japan Friendship Hospital, considering their project is about skin burn treatment.
Collaboration Beyond the Project
With WHU_China, HUST_China, and HUST2_China
https://2021.igem.org/Team:WHU-China/Collaborations
https://2021.igem.org/Team:HUST-China/Collaborations
https://2021.igem.org/Team:HUST2-China/Collaborations
On August 11th, CAU_China hosted an open online education event together with the iGEM teams WHU_China, HUST_China and HUST2_China and the help from the Youth Club of the Century Science and Trade Building Community.
This discussion focused on the topic “A Better World With Synthetic Biology”, and we invited more than 200 volunteers from the public to join our discussion, in which four teams introduced the basic facts about synthetic biology and shared their own project. We believe this discussion has brought iGEM and synthetic biology into the sight of more people, since participants showed great interest and approved of our projects.
After the discussion, four teams continued to have an in-depth discussion in the human practices methods and experiments design.
With MEPhl iGEM_2021
https://2021.igem.org/Team:MEPhI/Collaborations
On September 15, we were contacted by MEPhl iGEM_2021, a team from Russia. In the following month we worked together on the Engineering Biology Problem Book, for which our team provided two questions and waiting for other people’s answers, and we both had a great time working on it.
With SDSZ_China
https://2021.igem.org/Team:SDSZ_China/Collaborations
In September, SDSZ_China, this inspiring high school team, offered us chances to do educational activity in high school. Together we held the educational activity "Molecular Cloning and iGEM" successfully in SDSZ, thanks for their help in advertising and organizing. As an exchange, we provided them with the opportunity to enter China Agricultural University to introduce iGEM to all undergraduate freshmen of the College of Biology on October 13th. We think this exchange of education opportunities very valuable between high school team and collegiate team.In addition, we showed them the simple teaching materials we compiled for primary and secondary school education. In the communication with them, we learned about their experimental details and objectives, as well as the situation and difficulties faced by the iGEM high school team (including time arrangement, experimental arrangement and skills), which were helpful and enlightening to us.
With BUCT, SDSZ_China
https://2021.igem.org/Team:BUCT/Partnership
On October 13th, we hosted an educational event towards undergraduates major in biology in China Agricultural University, together with BUCT and SDSZ_China.
This lecture focused on the history, applications, future, and possible dangers of synthetic biology, and involved the introduction and well-done projects of iGEM competition. Together we aimed to promote the idea of synthetic biology in undergraduates and we wanted to inspire them to think about how can they involve synthetic biology in their own scientific research by introducing outstanding iGEM projects.
Due to the pandemic, partners from BUCT and SDSZ_China failed to get access to our campus, but they have devoted themselves in the preparation of this planning case and gave us elaborate materials and slides. We, in turn, organized and carried out this lecture offline, and were responsible for Q&A and gathering feedbacks. Knowing that the audience had showed great enthusiasm and curiosity in synthetic biology and iGEM after this lecture, we felt this collaboration really worth it.
Besides, we got in touch with BUCT in May and have developed a close partnership in this iGEM season. See more in Partnership.