Under the spring sunshine, iGEMers engaged in a thought-provoking exchange of ideas. Teams from various locations shared their innovative projects. The WHU-iGEM team introduced a novel peptide delivery system using E. coli, aimed at treating IBD. The HuBu-CHINA team showcased their research on targeted gene editing using outer membrane vesicles. The NAU-CHINA2024 team focused on food safety, presenting the development of a rapid detection kit for potato beetle insecticide and bovine mastitis. These projects not only demonstrated the potential of synthetic biology in medical and agricultural applications but also facilitated in-depth communication and idea exchange among teams, inspiring new research directions.
Figure 1 A group photo of all the people attending the meeting
At Xi'an Jiaotong-Liverpool University, we gathered with iGEMers from around the world to discuss the progress of our experimental and practical work within our respective projects. Throughout the conference, we heard about many interesting projects such as memory bread and biological mosquito control, while also sharing our own improvements and efforts in increasing tagatose production yield. We exchanged experimental ideas and progress with multiple teams while discussing outreach strategies together.Hopefully, with our respective small efforts, we can push synthetic biology even further.
Figure 2 Photos taken at the meeting
In this promising summer day, we gathered with the NNU-CHINA to discuss innovative applications of synthetic biology in modern agriculture and health.
NNU-CHINA presented their in-depth research on the synthesis technology of 5-ALA. As a compound with extensive applications in agriculture, 5-ALA is providing new solutions for increasing crop yields and promoting plant growth through their innovative genetic engineering techniques. Our team shared the latest advancements in the production and detection of tagatose. Through gene mining and directed evolution, we aimed to improve the production efficiency of tagatose while exploring its new applications in health. Simultaneously, we introduced our HP activities from the perspectives of publicity and presentation, focusing on promoting our project to specific audiences and striving to illuminate the brilliance of synthetic biology for all.
This exchange was not only a sharing of knowledge but also a meeting of minds and a collision of ideas. We felt excited about the positive impacts that synthetic biology can bring to modern agriculture and health, and we look forward to collaborating with the NNU-CHINA to advance this field, bringing more health and well-being to human society. We believe that through relentless effort and close cooperation, we can achieve more breakthroughs in synthetic biology, creating a better future for the world.
Figure 3 A group photo of all the people attending the meeting
On August 10, 2024, we had an online exchange with two teams, HainanU-China and XMU-China. During the exchange, we shared our team's overall ideas and activities in the field of education. At the same time, we also learned about the wonderful activities carried out by HainanU-China in university education and XMU-China's overall ideas and planning for HP activities, which has greatly helped us in carrying out university education activities and summarizing the HP closed loop.
Figure 4 Meeting screenshot
On August 13, 2024, we had an online communication with NEFU-CHINA, which focused on sharing the team's project content and current work progress, and the two teams had a heated discussion at the meeting. Through this exchange, we realized that we did not have enough feedback on the real use of tagatose in the crowd. Subsequently, we purchased Tagatose online and sent it to the test takers to try it out, so as to get their real feedback.
Figure 5 Meeting screenshot
Our team has been committed to exploring the applications of artificial intelligence (AI) in synthetic biology, aiming to drive technological innovation and solve major societal challenges. To further investigate AI's potential in this field, we engaged in in-depth discussions with iGEMers from Nanjing University, Nanjing Normal University, and Peking University, where we shared our research results and insights.
In this collaboration, the Nanjing University team focused on the molecular mechanisms of PD-1/PD-L1 interactions. Using AI technology, they predicted key mutation sites and identified the critical role of tyrosine in immune suppression. This research provided new directions for immunoregulatory therapies for inflammatory bowel disease (IBD). The Nanjing Normal University team concentrated on optimizing protein solubility. Based on the AlphaFold2 model, they developed various strategies to improve the expression efficiency of recombinant proteins, including co-expression with molecular chaperones and optimization of fermentation conditions. These studies laid a solid foundation for protein engineering in synthetic biology.
Our team focused on enhancing the catalytic efficiency of tagatose-4 epimerase through site-directed mutagenesis. By performing single, double, triple, and even multiple mutations, we successfully optimized tagatose-4 epimerase, enabling it to more efficiently convert fructose into tagatose. This achievement opens up new possibilities for the treatment of diabetes and obesity.
Through these efforts, we hoped to pass the torch of synthetic biology to more people, promoting the continued development of this field.
We held in-depth discussions with several universities regarding our team’s research project. One of the key outcomes of these exchanges was the compilation and release of the EcN White Paper, a document co-authored by iGEM teams from eight universities. The white paper thoroughly explored the history, application scenarios, and scientific significance of Escherichia coli Nissle 1917 (EcN).
During these exchanges, we closely collaborated with teams from Wuhan University, Tianjin University, and the University of Science and Technology of China, among others. Together, we discussed the latest research developments on EcN, its potential applications in various fields, and its future directions. Through these discussions, we not only shared our own research findings but also gained new ideas and inspiration from other teams' practices. For example, EcN's applications in cancer-targeted therapy, inflammatory bowel disease, and microbiome regulation attracted widespread attention. Several teams also demonstrated how genetic engineering could be used to modify EcN, making it a more efficient therapeutic tool.
Our discussions also covered iGEM-related projects from various universities, showcasing EcN's broad applications in disease diagnosis, treatment, and biosafety. Additionally, we discussed important topics such as the biosafety and ethical considerations surrounding EcN, as well as the challenges and prospects for its clinical application. Through this collaboration, we successfully established long-term connections with multiple university teams, laying a solid foundation for future cooperation.
The release of the white paper not only highlighted our team’s research achievements in this field but also provided valuable reference material for the entire iGEM community. We hope that through this platform, we can inspire more researchers and academic teams to contribute to the advancement of EcN-related research.
In order to promote our project, we contributed a theme poster on tagatose and health issues to ICII. We displayed the project introduction and project posters on the homepage of the website. The relevant knowledge of tagatose is shown in the form of comics.
ICII (Into China, Into iGEM) is an activity of NAU in conjunction with multiple iGEM teams in China, aiming to build a multi-team information platform for promoting and exchanging synthetic biology. Through the integration of science and art, the knowledge of synthetic biology becomes more vivid and interesting.
Figure 6 wiki