Team:MIT MAHE
PROJECT ABSTRACT
Our project is a modular solution for safe research and experimentation for genetically engineered organisms for application in agriculture. Our model implements a process that targets a pest and a crop on a case by case basis, and identifies ways to limit the organism within the required parameters. Our proof of concept tests stem borers and rice crops as our target pest-crop pair. We plan to use a natural endophyte of rice, Bacillus subtilis, to introduce anti-stem borer properties along with other additional benefits for the crop. The system is such that the toxin for controlling the stem borers is only expressed within the stem borer, and the endophyte will only survive within the plant and stem borer environments.