What? Why? How?

What does our database do?

An easy access platform with a database of various host organisms and tools to work with them.

Why?

For a considerable amount of time, it has been known that Escherichia coli is not the omnipotent synthetic biology model organism that it is made out to be. With many context failures and departures from the desired expression once out of the lab, it has become frustrating to work with specialized functions in model organisms.

When a model organism fails to optimally express a gene isolated from another organism, the next proposed step could be to either try to clone it into another organism or work with the native yet uncharacterized organism. But, working with an uncharacterised organism can have multiple natural hindrances like growth and maintenance conditions. A larger roadblock can be obtaining the protocols, parts, vectors, and even simple things like optimal growth and maintenance conditions.

Our team faced many of the problems mentioned above while we tried to work with the halo-extremophile, Haloferax volcanii. Hence, we decided to come up with a database that would help ease the transition to working with an organism less worked with.

Team:IIT-Madras/Description

What? Why? How?

What does our database do?

Why?