Team:UCL/Project/About

From 2014.igem.org

Revision as of 22:06, 4 September 2014 by Lewismoffat (Talk | contribs)

Goodbye Azodye UCL iGEM 2014

About Our Project

Human Practice Team

The Problem: Azo Dyes in the Environment

 Azo dyes are the main synthetic colourant used in the industrial manufacture of a wide range of products such as clothing, upholstery, cosmetics, tattoo ink and more. These dyes are widely known to be safe and stable forms of synthetic colourants, however, when they are broken down in the guts of organisms they take on dangerous properties. In industry, leftover dye effluent is often not properly disposed of, or removed, during water treatment, which results in the accumulation of azo dyes in water bodies. It is at this point that these excess dyes are ingested, broken down, and excreted as products that have been found to be mutagenic and carcinogenic. Despite such toxicity, little to no effort has been made to dispose of these leftover azo dyes more responsibly.

Contact Us

University College London
Gower Street - London
WC1E 6BT
Biochemical Engineering Department
Phone: +44 (0)20 7679 2000
Email: ucligem2014@gmail.com

Follow Us