Introduction

The discovery that communication around our project and knowledge sharing were taken into account in the iGEM judging criteria was a real satisfaction for our team. We quickly understood the importance of raising public awareness of major global issues such as phytopathogens, the use of pesticides and their impacts on our health. In addition, our discussions with various stakeholders (agricultural organizations, producers) throughout this adventure showed us how crucial it is to make visible the steps and people involved in access to healthy food. Agriculture and its professions deserve greater recognition, and we wanted to contribute to this.

In addition to this awareness raising, we wanted to demonstrate how biology, and more specifically synthetic biology, could be used to solve problems on a regional and national scale. This opportunity allowed us to promote both this field of research and the iGEM competition.

It was also essential for us to share our passion for science with people who are not familiar with it. This gave rise to very enriching moments of exchange, discovery and scientific sharing.

We sought to adapt our actions to varied audiences, ranging from adolescents to teacher-researchers, in order to promote mutual learning.

Creation of the game "Bac'War"

To enrich our interventions, we designed a board game called "Bac'War", inspired by the game "Cellulose". This game allows us to introduce in a fun way the basics of molecular biology, microbiology and synthetic biology. At each event where we proposed it, it generated great enthusiasm.

Its objective is to show the potential of synthetic biology while explaining our project in a fun way. The cards of the game include small scientific information to better understand certain concepts.

Bac'War depicts a wheat field infected by the BYDV virus. Players, who are biologists concerned with preserving the ecosystem, aim to genetically modify bacteria to save the field. However, an infected aphid player must defend themselves and attempt to infect as many healthy aphids and wheat as possible in the field.

This strategy game takes place on a field board, featuring the movement of healthy and infected aphid pieces that interact with each other through dice rolls and drawn cards.

On the other side, the production of genetically modified bacteria follows a simplified molecular cloning method on a laboratory board. A transcription and translation diagram on this board helps players understand the process of converting DNA into protein. Several game cards contain explanatory text and fun facts about the biological elements involved, allowing players to learn about the significance of synthetic biology while having fun.

This fun format allowed us to reach various audiences:

• Students with no prior scientific training,
• Science enthusiasts happy to recognize and learn new concepts,
• Experts who appreciated the scientific depth and humor that we integrated into the game.

Raising awareness of current issues

Various posts were published on our Instagram account to raise awareness of the issues related to our project, in particular on:

• Phytopathogenic treatments, biocontrol and alternatives to pesticides, as well as environmental issues.
• Aphids and barley yellow dwarf virus.

Recap

Throughout this iGEM season, we made it a point of honor to make education and communication our priorities. We sought to reach a wide audience, with varied scientific profiles and levels. Each activity and each communication material was adapted to our audience, thus promoting dialogue and mutual learning.

Our objective was to promote synthetic biology while addressing issues such as food sources, sustainability and responsible consumption.

We learned a lot thanks to these interventions and would like to thank all the actors who made this possible. We hope that our actions have:

• Helped students discover iGEM, synthetic biology and career prospects in this field,
• Guided students in choosing their specialty (microbiology, genomics, virology),
• Raised awareness among scientists about our project and the potential of Bac’Attack,
• Informed the general public about synthetic biology techniques and global agricultural issues.

We hope that all these interventions and the lessons learned will inspire future iGEM teams and help them continue our efforts in education and communication.