Team:SCUT-China A/Achievement Result
Result
1. We standardized the SRRz lysis gene to build a novel visible reporter.
2. We screened out a series of operons specifically responding to different kinds of heavy metal ions which can be expressed in E.coil BL21. And we make a collection of these parts.
3. We linked our reporter with different heavy metal ion-specific operons, to create a series of new Devices, and transform these devices into Escherichia coli BL21, to construct a series of heavy metal ions bio-sensors.
4. We verified that the Devices(BioBrick Parts) of our own design did work as we expected.
5. In order to realize the quantitative analysis, we built a model which takes time and concentrations of heavy metal ions as arguments and β-galactosidase as dependent variable.
6. We demonstrated our engineering bacteria under realistic conditions (water from natural environment added with heavy metal ions). Our devices could rapidly detect heavy metal ions in aqueous solution and the reporter is remarkably visible.
7. We developed a kind of cell phone app matching to our method. With the app, our devices are able to detect the chemical substances quantitatively in a certain concentration range..
8. In summary, we build a novel visible reporter and develop an efficient method that can be widely used in the field of detection.
1. At the beginning of the project, we interviewed Guining Lu (Professor of School of Environmental Science and Engineering, South China University of Technology) to learn about the status of heavy metal pollution in South China and the existing means of detection. And we find the demand of the method to detect heavy metal ions more conveniently.
2. We interviewed Xiongwen Yang (Professor of Law School, South China University of Technology) to learn about the China 's existing laws and regulations governing microbial products, which ensured the legitimacy and safety of our project.
3. We interviewed the Environmental Protection Administration of Xiaolan Town to learn about the local situation of heavy metal pollution, verify the feasibility of our project and got some suggestions to optimize our project.
4. We visited an electroplating factory, to consult their needs and requirements for heavy metal bio-sensors products and to ask them for advice on our projects and products.
5. We interviewed Junjiu Huang (Associate Professor, School of Life Sciences, Sun Yat - sen University), Lizhen Huang (Associate Professor, School of Biological Science and Engineering, South China University of Technology) and Yaqin Wang (Associate Professor, School of Life Sciences, South China Normal University), consulting their advice on optimizing our projects and products.
6. We conducted a questionnaire survey to understand the public's knowledge of heavy metal-related information and the need for related public science education
7. We promote knowledge of heavy metal-related information, synthetic biology and iGEM In our university, a high school, as well as some public places.
1. To optimize our method’s practical application, we will make efforts to turn our engineering bacteria into freeze-dried powder form, making it more portable.
2. To reduce the impact of environmental factors, we try making “dark box” to reduce the impact of light on the mobile phone app.
3. Try to apply our reporting elements to other detection areas.
