IGEM:The Citadel/Notebook/13 April 2010

From the Meeting on April 13th, 2010

Homework to Do For the Meeting

• Review all project information for the following teams:
  • Berkeley 2007
  • Cambridge 2009
  • MIT 2006
  • Groningen 2009

Question to ask ourselves: How can we drive these forward?

Be thinking about project ideas.

On the Agenda

• Brainstorm project ideas -- DONE
• Divide into iGEM research category groups -- FAIL
• Get everyone signed up on OWW. -- DONE (except John and Cy)
• Teach everyone how to operate a wiki. -- FAIL (until everyone has an account, no point)
• Procrastinate -- DONE
• Make plans for April Training. -- DONE (see below)
• Arrange for future meeting times (see about having a prof in attendance starting soon) -- DONE

Meeting Notes

Timeline

• Narrow project ideas down to three or four goodies (April 19-23)
• Select project deadline (April 27)
• Project planning and research (April 27-mid May)
• Begin project (early May)

Project Ideas

• UV detection and reporting (applications for sunscreen and tanning oil)
  • Color output? Intensity dependent on UV levels?
  • How does this drive the field forward? What elements of the project would be new and interesting?
• Trailing pond remediation.
  • A "complete package" bacteria.
    • Timekeeping mechanism, probably via Hasty et. al's quorum sensing
    • Event log
    • Multiple biosensing targets (we can go with elements already done with iGEM and look to some new ones). Plug-and-play variability.
    • Quantitative reporting that is easily obtained (no special equipment) by the researcher (think Cambridge 2009)
    • Synchronized data reporting across the colony
    • Minuscule input produces amplified, whole colony, response. (must be unique and rare!)
    • Sequestering or other remediation measure.
    • Continued reporting.
• Bacterial timekeeper. Hours and Date.
  • Hasty et al. as a starting point.
  • Display capacity? (light, pigement)
    • Bacterial location awareness within the colony
    • Shifts to reflect passage of time (light from Hasty appears to be 5 cycles every 8-9 hours)

April Training Session

• I will be drafting an outline of the training to be done. Brian D. Burnley 03:38, 15 April 2010 (EDT)
• Training will cover
  • Biobrick Assembly
  • PCR
  • Transformation (chemical competency)
  • GFP Measurement (maybe)
  • Cell Culturing and Plating
• People will be able to comment on the outline by early next week (April 19 or 20). Requesting any and all comments from professors and students.
• End of April in the target for conducting the training session(s).