Difference between revisions of "Team:Hong Kong HKU"

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<p>Our project this year continues the work of last year’s HKU iGEM 2016 Team. By focusing on the intriguing world of diagnostic probes, we aim to improve on last year’s design and increase the effectiveness of disease detection. Contrary to last year’s design, we have come up with an alternative tetrahedron structure, in which the 3D tetrahedron is only formed upon binding to the target sequence. Our ultimate goal is to enable our functional DNA nanostructure to be synthesized and self-assembled inside E. coli. They will detect specific biomarkers expressed in the diseased cells. This website will guide you on our journey throughout the iGEM Competition 2017. Click to explore and enjoy!</p>
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  <b>Project Description</b>
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  With the advent of DNA nanotechnology, the age old "DNA is the genetic blueprint of living beings" has expanded greatly with our increasing understanding about the physical and chemical properties of DNA. Establishing its basis through "Holiday Junction" and DNA origami such as of "Smiley Face", DNA nanotechnology has made its way as one of the most advanced and sought-after branches of synthetic biology.<br>
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  With the recent advances in DNA nanotechnology, scientists have made one success story after another to apply DNA nanodevices like three dimensional DNA structures in clinical diagnosis, environmental and nutritional fields. However, all of these structures have so far been done in vitro, where the structures are functional only outside living cells.<br>
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  Therefore, HKU iGEM Team 2017 will continue to focus on HKU's strengths in the field of DNA nanotechnology and will be aiming to delve into this field, taking it further by aiming to produce a three dimensional nuclei acid-detecting structure in vivo that can be expressed directly in the living cell. Our goal is to design a DNA structure and try to express it in <i>E. coli</i> where the structure will be used to detect nucleic acid markers which may have prospective applications in aspects such as disease diagnosis, environmental fields, etc. We will make use of Watson-Crick base pairings, aptamers and G-quadruplex sequences to achieve our goal.<br>
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  <b>All in all, we are opting our best to create something new through iGEM in the world of synthetic biology to contribute to its advancement.</b>
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Revision as of 13:12, 9 October 2017

Our project this year continues the work of last year’s HKU iGEM 2016 Team. By focusing on the intriguing world of diagnostic probes, we aim to improve on last year’s design and increase the effectiveness of disease detection. Contrary to last year’s design, we have come up with an alternative tetrahedron structure, in which the 3D tetrahedron is only formed upon binding to the target sequence. Our ultimate goal is to enable our functional DNA nanostructure to be synthesized and self-assembled inside E. coli. They will detect specific biomarkers expressed in the diseased cells. This website will guide you on our journey throughout the iGEM Competition 2017. Click to explore and enjoy!