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iGEM & Synthetic iGEM & Synthetic BiologyBiology

International Genetically Engineered International Genetically Engineered Machine CompetitionMachine Competition

Randy RettbergRandy Rettbergigem2007.com

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SB 3.0 Zurich6/24/07

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An Engineering Question

Can simple biological systems be built from standard, interchangable parts and operated in living cells?

Or, is biology so complex that each case is unique?

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Education Driving Research

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International Genetically Engineered Machine Competition 2005

−13 SchoolsCaltech MIT UC BerkeleyCambridge, UK Oklahoma UCSFDavidson Penn State UT AustinETH, Zurich PrincetonHarvard Toronto, Canada

−Sponsored by Microsoft/MIT iCampus

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iGEM 2006

• 40 Schools, 33 Teams • 450 participants

• Europe, Canada, Asia, Latin America, US• Some EU funding in place

• iGEM ambassadors for US, Asia, and Europe

• Jamboree November 4 & 5• www.iGEM2006.com• Supported by Microsoft

Research and iCampus

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Ege University, Turkey

iGEM 2006

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www.iGEM2006.com

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Meet the Teams

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Valencia iGEM Site iGEM Site

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iGEM 2006 Results

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Sample iGEM Projects

Berkeley Controlled Communications Davidson Flipping DNA Harvard DNA Boxes ETH Zurich Pattern MatchingLjubljana Controlling Sepsis Chiba JapanLight-Directed Chemotaxis Mississippi Hydrogen Gas Detector MIT Banana and Wintergreen Smells Edinburgh Arsenic Detector

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MIT iGEM 2006

eau d’e coli

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The field test device

A test tube could contain all the necessarycomponents: Freeze dried bacteria, growth

medium,indicator powder, Ampicillin salt, etc…•These tubes could then be

given to local villagers to monitor their own water quality themselves

•A good alternative to the widely used Gutzeit method

www.Macteria.co.uk

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Some Engineering Answers

Can simple biological systems be built from standard, interchangable parts and operated in living cells?

- YES, SOMETIMES

Or, is biology so complex that each case is unique?

- NOT ALWAYS

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www.igem2007.com

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Financial Resources

Small Sample:$20K 8$30K 8$40K 1$50K 4>$50K 2

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• 2008: 100 Schools -> Partition?

• Geographic Competitions

• Tracts• Health and Medicine• Energy and the Environment• Parts and Devices• Fun and Games• Sensors• Other

iGEM 2007 and Beyond

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The Impact of iGEM

• Students• Making future synthetic biologists• Teaching graceful competition

• Instructors• Opportunities for junior faculty• New programs - new ideas• A task worth the effort

• Schools• Synthetic biology entering curriculum• Energize research programs

• Synthetic Biology• Examples, parts, successes, testamonials

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Registry of Standard Biological Parts

An industry based on standard parts requires catalogues and suppliers of those parts.

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http://parts.mit.edu

Registry Registry Parts Catalog

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Registry Contents 7/2007

• Promoters

• Protein Coding

• Reporters

• RNA

• Terminators

• Signaling

• Many project parts

1400 Parts Available as DNA

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Constitutive Promoters - Berkeley

Part Characterization

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DNA Repository

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DNA Repository

• All parts sent to teams• Parts are from previous teams

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Robotic Assembly

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DNA Synthesis Offer

GENEART synthetic DNA offer for iGEM teams

• All you want at $0.70 per base• 100,000 bases total at $0.25 per base• About 2000 bases per team for $500• GENEART is a primary sponsor of iGEM 2007

http://www.geneart.com/index.php?id=252

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New Programs

• BioBrick Part Program• iGEM in Europe• Registry in Europe• New Registry Workshop• Standards Workshop• iGEM Steering Committee

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Standards

Device Families• Protein : DNA logic• Post-translational control• RNA-based control• Localization

Measurement• Input and Outputs

(PoPS - Polymerase Per Second)• Genetic stability• Cross-lab consistency

Operating Environment• Load on the cell• Environmental impact on performance• Models

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Sponsors

• National Science Foundation

• SynBERC

• CSBi

• GENEART

• Microsoft Research

• Biological Engineering - MIT

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Teachers Workshops

• MIT May 26th

• China June 16-17• Zurich June 27th

• Hands-on training• Future instructors welcome

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How can I participate?

• Organize a team for 2008• Volunteer for the BioBrick parts program.• Join the Awards committee• Be a judge• Have your lab join the Registry• Contribute parts to the Registry• Use BioBrick part standards• Help raise money for teams and

ambassadors in your area.• Join iGEM committees (see the wiki)• Join iGEM in Europe