Overview
CAU-China has developed a series of innovative tools and resources centered around Sinorhizobium for all iGEM teams and the world. We hope to promote the dissemination of synthetic biology and contribute to the further development of life sciences, through our efforts at wet lab, dry lab and human practices.
Wet Lab
Based on exploring endogenous parts of Sinorhizobium, CAU-China developed a new model for anaerobic production in Sinorhizobium, which achieves double harvesting during soybean cultivation and ensures the safety of the agricultural production process at the same time. We hope to promote this system to achieve wider production and application in the legume-nodule symbiosis system.
A New Anaerobic Synthesis System
- Based on the legume-nodule symbiosis system, it allows for a more rational use of agricultural resources and a double harvest of agricultural products and by-products.
- It realizes difficult industrial production under anaerobic conditions.
- Unique and efficient regulation realizes organic integration with the agricultural production process.
Safer and More Rational Suicide Circuit
- Endogenous toxin and antitoxin genes from Sinorhizobium fredii CCBAU45436 ensure safe and reliable suicide pattern.
- Precise regulation ensures that the initiation of suicide circuit can carry out accurately.
- Suicide under specific condition allows our system to be efficiently adapted to the agricultural production process.
Use Endogenous Parts from Rhizobia
- Avoid the negative effects of gene leakage to ensure safer and more reliable use in agricultural production.
- The use of gene sequences from Sinorhizobium fredii CCBAU45436 ensures the metabolic circuits operate with high accuracy and efficiency while greatly reducing the engineering construction time.
- Promote synthetic biology of plant and microorganisms by provide more wider application and safer parts in the field of plant-nodules.
Based on the experimental work of CAU-China, future iGEM teams can:
- rapidly achieve synthetic biology engineering in Sinorhizobium by using more efficient and safer parts.
- use the complete legume-nodule anaerobic production system for more extensive synthetic biology exploration.
- save time and costs to allocate resources more efficiently to other key aspects of the project.
Dry Lab
CAU-China developed a series of models and software to improve the construction of the anaerobic legume-nodule symbiosis system, which can better predict the growth and metabolism of rhizobia in soybean roots. Based on our new nodules model, we hope that it can provide more accurate predictions for the future iGEM team in Sinorhizobium synthetic biology.
Computational Modelling of 3D Cellular Automata
- Constructed in strict accordance with the mechanism of nodule formation in the literature, it accurately simulates the formation pattern of infesting soybean.
- When using Sinorhizobium as the chassis, this rhizome formation model can be directly utilized, and further calculations can be made by simply changing the parameters.
- Enjoying the beauty of the symbiosis between Sinorhizobia and legume roots, which may guide a series of bionic design and algorithmic attempts.
Based on the dry lab work of CAU-China, future iGEM teams can:
- use the prediction software to easily and quickly retrieve the required metabolites and their metabolic changes, providing ideas for subsequent experimental design and speeding up experimental design.
- make joint efforts to develop the field of anabolism by continually replenish database in the open-source prediction software.
- gain insight into the growth and metabolism of Sinorhizobium in soybean roots conveniently, facilitating synthetic biology modifications in Sinorhizobium.
Human Practices
With Harmony as our motto, CAU-China works through an artistic and responsible approach. While responding to the Sustainable Development Goals, we convey the idea of a society in which rhizomes and soybeans coexist in harmony. We also endeavor to break down the knowledge barriers of synthetic biology (Education) and give everyone the opportunity to participate in the field of science (Inclusivity).
Efforts to achieve SDG 2/4/8/10/12/17
Work for the present and benefit the future. Not only CAU-China, the efforts for the SDGs from all the teams are an important step towards the grand goal of sustainable development.
iGEM version of Uno cards & “Spot-the-mistake" web game
CAU-China developed two instructional games, iGEM version of Uno and “Spot-the-mistake" web game. Based on the human practice work of CAU-China, future iGEM teams can:
- play games while teaching, which can attract students' interest and attention, stimulating their love for basic biological knowledge.
- integrate the Uno cards into teaching, which can help understand esoteric knowledge when teaching younger students.
- use web games to promote laboratory safety awareness without enter the laboratory in person, which not only avoids the potential danger of laboratory operation, but also reduces the boredom of oral safety education.
Online courses
CAU-China made online science popularization education courses and uploaded them online. Based on our work, future iGEM teams can:
- promote educational equity by distant teaching and learning, which can solve the problem of inconvenient teaching in remote areas.
- choose the content or form of teaching according to the need, facilitating teaching and studying.