Team:NNU-China/HumanPractice/Gold
Overview
Inspired by related news and through offline field trips to farms and hospitals, we learned that there is a problem of antibiotic abuse and the emergence of drug-resistant strains of bacteria, which are closely related to the lives of the general public. In response, we actively explored solutions to the dangers of antibiotic abuse. We have reviewed many literature, interviewed and consulted with many professors and experts in the field to find antibacterial peptides as an alternative to antibiotics, and we have also fully communicated with industry-related departments and companies to improve the production of antibacterial peptides to effectively improve the problem of antibiotic abuse. In the key experimental design steps, we solved the problem of library construction by consulting microbial gene editing experts. During the design and process of the experiment, we also kept close contact with other teams and shared a lot of valuable information with each other. We also conducted an online questionnaire survey and offline public education on synthetic biology in order to investigate the public's awareness and acceptance of antibiotic abuse and antimicrobial peptides. During all the above activities, we always followed the professional's knowledge and ensured the information security of the participants.
In the whole HP activities, each part is complementary to each other, forming an organic whole.
Our HP is not a loose activity independent of the project, but an organic whole that complements each other. All the activities of HP are related to our project design and promotion. With the discussion of team members, we decided the basic idea of HP: to further understand the background to promote the project design through HP, and use the information obtained from HP to optimize and improve the subject design, then guide the experiment through the subject design, and finally evaluate the effect of HP through the test results. At the same time, public opinion is also important to us, so after the project design was perfected to a certain extent, we immediately designed questionnaires to collect social feedback.
Of course, all our HPs are conducted in strict accordance with the relevant safety guidelines.
I. Discovery background
· How Our HP Inform and Shape Our Project
To do a good job on a project, the part of preliminary investigation of basic information is crucial. Therefore, after being inspired by the news about the harm caused by antibiotic abuse, we combined the lecture by Academician Pang and went directly to hospitals and farms for field visits to understand the current use of antibiotics. Through our exchanges, our team learned that there is indeed a serious situation of antibiotic abuse and that this has caused some harm to human society, making it particularly urgent to address this issue. This information certainly provided good inspiration for our project that our project is valuable and necessary. And once realized, it will solve social problems and benefit human life.
· How We Respond to Our HP
Based on information obtained from HP and brainstorming within the team, as well as consulting with professors and experts in the field, we determined the general direction of the project: to find a solution to antibiotic abuse and to implement it effectively.
II. Finding alternatives to antibiotics
· How Our HP Inform and Shape Our Project
In order to effectively solve the problem of antibiotic abuse and to get concrete solutions, we have met with professors from universities and related companies several times. In each communication, we stick to our own direction and give full consideration to how to improve the positive impact of the project on society and how to benefit more people. Professor Jiang Ling pointed out the search for alternatives to antibiotics as the optimal solution Among them, antimicrobial peptides may be a safe, effective and promising alternative. And through further communication with GenScript, we also learned that the biosynthesis method is more suitable for commercial mass production, with the advantages of reducing time and economic cost as well as increasing yield and purity.
· How We Respond to Our HP
The information obtained at this stage was the key to the design of our project. We listened to the proposal of Prof. Jiangling and chose antimicrobial peptides as the object of our team's project and conducted in-depth research. We also used the advice given by GenScript to finalize the specific direction of our project: to construct a library of protein expressing strains with different intensities, transfer the fusion protein of antibacterial peptide and green fluorescent protein into the library, and quickly obtain the best producers through fluorescence screening.
III. Project optimization
· How Our HP Inform and Shape Our Project
In order to optimize and improve the design of the subject content and provide reliable guidance for experimental design, we interviewed expert professors in related fields several more times, and Prof. Hao Liu pointed out that E. coli PET system could be used to systematically optimize expression. Prof. Xiu-lai Chen suggested that we should not be limited to the Base editor system in constructing library, and direct use of synthetic degenerate RBS oligo may be a more efficient choice.
· How We Respond to Our HP
The HP activities in this session are synchronized with our experiments to achieve the combination of HP and experiments. When problems were found, the HP helped us to solve them. Therefore, the information obtained at this stage was directly reflected in our project design: using of E. coli pET system; direct use of synthetic degenerate RBS oligo in constructing the library.
IV. Results of Our Questionnaire
· How Our HP Inform and Shape Our Project
The analysis of the questionnaire results provided us with an understanding of social awareness and attitudes toward the dangers of antibiotic misuse and the acceptance of antimicrobial peptides. These analyzed data are consistent with the results of our preliminary interviews with farms and hospitals, proving the relevance and necessity of our study.
· How We Respond to Our HP
The results of the analysis of these questionnaire data did not directly influence our project design, so we did not have the means to feed it directly as we did with the results of the expert interviews in our design. However, we used this valuable social survey data when establishing partnerships with companies.
To make the most of the information in the questionnaire, we used it to communicate with companies in biology. Based on the analysis of the information, we were able to reach a consensus that led to a partnership.
Value orientation of the project
As we move forward and improve the project, we always put safety first. The vision of our project is to use antimicrobial peptides instead of antibiotics to solve the problem of antibiotic abuse in our society. Once these new methods are used on a large scale, any slight problem on safety can become a serious public safety problem. Therefore, the need of safety attention is at the forefront of our program. This was reflected in the questionnaires we distributed to the public, which clearly explained the issue and investigated the public's acceptance.
When implementing the project, we wanted to protect the interests of our users (hospitals, farms, general public, etc.) to the greatest extent possible. This can be fully reflected in our HP design: we adopted the advice of many industry experts. And during the HP process, we were touched by the real harm caused by antibiotic abuse, which strengthened our determination to solve this problem.
Because our project uses proven technology and does not directly edit the genes of plants and animals, it does not introduce ethical issues.
Close the loop!
When running HP campaigns, we focus heavily on translating others' suggestions into the design of our themes, thus creating a closed loop between others' expectations and our designs. These positive feedbacks are shown in the figure below.
