Team:CUHKSZ/pages/description
Description
Drinking is an essential part of people's social life around the world. China also has profound history and culture of liquor. About 3,000 years ago, the Chinese began to make a large quantity of liquor. Liquor permeates almost all aspects of Chinese culture such as literature and health care. Among all the Chinese liquor, Maotai is the most famous one. It has special flavor produced by 4-Ethylguaiacol. Despite the flavor, it also contains some ingredients that is beneficial to human health. Ethyl linoleate in Maotai can boost immunity and reduce serum cholesterol. However, high concentration of ethanol in such liquor can be harmful. Alcohol affects the functions of brain, heart, liver, and it can lead to Asian flush and several types of cancer.
Therefore, our team CUHKSZ wants to design a biological device that can decompose the ethanol in alcoholic drinks, including modifying a bacterium to make it decompose the ethanol rapidly, as well as construct a container for the bacteria. By dipping the device into liquor, people can easily enjoy the drink and benefit from its healthy ingredients without worrying about the health risks.