"
Header
We are proud to participate in iGEM 2013 and are excited to present
Taxi.Coli.
Taxi.Coli is a highly flexible and adaptable smart drug delivery system.
We want to use E.coli as a Taxi, that expresses streptavidin on its surface as Seats for the Passengers, which are the biotinylated nanoparticles that contain a drug. Once Taxi.Coli arrives at the Address, a specific environment, it will produce an enzyme that degrades the nanoparticles, releasing the incorporated drug the passenger gets out of the car.
Our effort will be limited to a proof of principle, but one can imagine a wide range of future applications.
Achievements:
- We can produce biotinylated nanoparticles
- We can engineer E.coli expressing streptavidin (maybe even on the surface) to bind these nanoparticles
- We can engineer E.coli to sense different values of pH
- We can make E.coli express superfolded GFP constitutively
- We can excite other students about synthetic biology
Please also visit our Facebook page!
Medal requirements
Bronze medal
- We registered the team and had fun in the competition.
- We filled in the Judging form.
- We described our project using the iGEM wiki and our parts using the Registry of Standard Biological Parts.
- We plan to present a poster and talk at the iGEM Jamboree in Lyon.
- We designed and submitted the following Biobricks BBa_K1111001, BBa_K1111002, BBa_K111103, BBa_K1111004, BBa_K1111005, BBa_K1111006, BBa_K1111007, BBa_K1111008, BBa_K1111009, BBa_K1111010, BBa_K1111011, BBa_K1111012, BBa_K1111013, BBa_K1111014.
Silver medal
- We experimentally validated that the Biobrick BBa_K1111005 works as expected.
- We documented all our parts on the iGEM Registry of Standard Biological Parts.
- We investigated the safety issues which could be raised by our project. Take a look at our safety page.
Gold medal
- We improved the function of the already existing Biobrick BBa_K523013 by extensively characterizing and documenting it. This will help future teams to use it.
- We prepared an amazing synthetic biology kit which will be used at public events and high school visits at EPFL. Take a look at our Outreach page.
- We organized a women and engineering's day at our university to promote women in science.
Thanks to our sponsors
Many thanks to our sponsors who made it possible for us to take part in this amazing competition.
