Team:TU Delft-Leiden/Achievements

iGEM 2014 Microfluidics Track

Bronze Medal

• Team registration
• Complete Judging form
• Team Wiki
• Poster and talk for the iGEM Giant Jamboree ready
• Demonstration of the implementation of any fluidic system. Our team documented via video, images, and text how we fabricated and tested any milli-, micro- or nano-fluidic system. The system documentation includes both the fluidic device and any hardware for controlling the device. We provide evidence that (a) at least one system was fabricated, and (b) at least one aspect of the system functions as planned.

Silver Medal

In addition to these, our team achieved the following goals that qualify us for a silver medal:

• Our team has demonstrated the implementation of a novel fluidic system
• Our team has documented what we consider novel features compared to previous work. We also used an existing fluidic system to miniaturize an established biological process and characterize an existing Part or Device. Next, we have documented any biological protocols performed utilizing our fluidic system.

Gold Medal

In addition to the Bronze and Silver Medal requirements, our team achieved the following goals, that qualify us for a gold medal:

• Utilizing our novel fluidic system, we have characterized the function of an existing Part. Any biological protocols performed utilizing our microfluidic system are documented. We compared biological protocols conducted on-chip against standard bench top techniques. Data collected is uploaded to the page of the part(s) used on the Registry of Standard Biological Parts via experience page/contribution system.
• Utilizing the fluidic system, we have characterized the following new Parts:
  • BBa_K1316011
  • BBa_K1316012
  • BBa_K1316016.
• Our team helped other registered iGEM teams from other institutions by characterizing a part and collaborated with other registered iGEM teams.
• During the summer we addressed several ethical concerns related to our project, eg. bringing synthetic biology outside the lab, the possibility that a microbial sensor device that detects landmines can get into the wrong hands and safety issues. To answer all these questions, we had meetings with various stakeholders. All these aspects are well documented on our Policy&Practice page
.

iGEM Special Prizes

Our team has additional achievements that make it eligible for the following prizes:

• Best Model: For the conductive curli module, we wanted to know if a conductive path between two electrodes of a chip filled with curli growing E. coli arise at a certain point in time. We also wanted to make quantitative predictions about the resistance between the two electrodes of our system in time. We used a stochastic modeling approach, and considered the system at the gene, cell and colony level. At the colony levvel, we employed percolation theory in order to predict if a conductive path between the two electrodes arise at a certain point in time and to predict at which time this happens. Our application of percolation theory to describe the formation of a conductive biological network represents a novel approach that has not been used in the literature before.
• Best Policy&Practice: By interviewing and discussing with a broad range of stakeholders, we have been able to determine the best application for our landmine detection module. Besides that, we have identified various issues concerning SynBio commercialization, such as legislature and public opinion, focused on the Netherlands, and proposed a strategy to guarantee a successful future for SynBio.
• Best Measurement Approach: We measured the current our modified E. coli generated via a selfmade anaerobic bioreactor setup coupled to a potentiostat in order to be able to measure current created by modified E. coli. Subsequently, we miniaturized our potentiostat system, creating a microfluidics device (an improved version of the Dropsens).
• Best Supporting Software: We wrote code for Labview in order to be able to perform the relevant measurements for our potentiostat setup. This code can be used by others to perform these measurements as well.