The DTU'14 iGEM team is an ambitious team consisting of nine graduate students, four advisors and three main supervisors with a total of six different nationalities. We share a deep interest in chemistry, biotechnology and synthetic biology and work dedicatedly in the cross-disciplinary environment of iGEM. Our group possesses a unique combination of valuable competences, comprising skills in molecular biology, biochemistry, mathematical modelling, scientific programming, project management, entrepreneurship as well as scientific and non-scientific communication. Combined our team has a keen interest in state-of-the-art biotechnology and is eager to contribute to the field of synthetic biology.

Fun is fundamental. There is no way around it. You absolutely must have fun. Without fun, there is no enthusiasm. Without enthusiasm, there is no energy. Without energy, there are only shades of gray.
- Doug Hall

To create and maintain a dynamic group and enjoyable working atmosphere as well as to keep up our enthusiasm when sitting inside a laboratory while getting snap-chatted by friends on the beach, we of course also went out sunbathing and swimming, enjoyed some cold beers, traditional Danish dinners, and delicious ice creams during the summer.

Team members

Anne Pihl Bali

Motivation I had several reasons for joining the DTU iGEM team. I wanted to follow all aspects of a project - from the idea generation to the experimental work as well as the communication and management involved in a big scientific project with several participants. Furthermore I wanted to improve my team working skills and challenge myself. Major contributions Meeting coordinator and streak purification master. How do you prefer spinach? Fresh spinach leaves as main component in a salad together with feta cheese, red pepper and a nice oil-based dressing.

Anne Sofie Lærke Hansen

Motivation I joined our team to experience how to manage a scientific project from the very beginning and to the end, to improve my team working skills as well as to work with some crazy science. Of course being shielded from the burning sun by spending most of my waking hours in front of a lab bench during the summer also kept me working on the project. Major contributions Coordination of the fundraising and sponsorships as well as maintaining a sterile environment in the lab. How do you prefer spinach? Try frozen spinach on a pizza with onion, bacon, goat cheese and a lot of garlic - that is delicious.

Caroline Mosbech

Motivation My great interest in synthetic biology is one of the main reasons why I’m participating in iGEM. The great thing about synthetic biology is that we are not only examining and observing nature, we are applying it in new contexts, together with the fact that it is a field experiencing rapid development and has a huge future potential. iGEM is a unique opportunity for me to be a part of an ambitious team and develop a project from absolute scratch to final jamboree. It’s amazing how different iGEM projects are and I’m looking forward to seeing this years contributions. Major contributions First of all movie star, but maybe more importantly responsible for preventing the autoclave from exploding. How do you prefer spinach? Spinach is a great color supplement to traditional danish food often kept in different shades of brown.

Georgi Dimitrov

Motivation My motivation is to gain as much experience as possible - Wiki page, Lab work ,Human relations and have a Crazy summer .My priority is to learn a lot about the practical part of Systems biology and to contribute to the science community if possible ,specially to all biohachers and citizen scientists all over the worlds. Major contributions Wiki geek. How do you prefer spinach? From a can. I prefer it the most when me and my girlfriend are in danger or one guy from the neighborhood is trying to steal her from me.

Kristian Barrett

Motivation As a child had a dream about studying biotechnology and be able to grow living houses from seeds. As I got older I realized that biology is much more complex than I could ever image. I have also always had a great interest within electronics and I like to build circuits to solve a problem. Then I heard about the concept of iGEM, I immediately know that this was a fusion between two of my greatest interests. In a far future I hope that biological components are so will described that we are able to program a cell to perform complex commands like grow a wooden living treehouse. Major contributions Making sure the DFHBI is stored properly and lighting up the bundsen burner. How do you prefer spinach? I prefer my Spinach fluorescent in the lab bound to DFHBI forming a fluorophore.

Kristian Jensen
	Motivation I am very interested in synthetic biology, so joining the university’s iGEM team seemed like an obvious choice. I am excited about the prospect of completing our own research project and hopefully contributing to the synthetic biology community. Major contributions Nanodropping like it's hot. How do you prefer spinach? Juiced - with a dash of vodka (or two).

Mark Thomas Østerlund
	Motivation I have a deep fascination with the possibilities of synthetic biology. The fact that we are know capable of tailoring organisms to fit our specific needs is just astonishing! Besides it’s a great opportunity to pick up some new skills relevant to working in a different kind of group. Major contributions Wiki. How do you prefer spinach? In a salmon-spinach pie.

Rasmus Bech

Motivation I joined iGEM in order to take part in a project where the students have more control and responsibility than other projects at DTU. It was also a motivation being part of a team, as large projects at DTU most often are individual. Major contributions Diluting things correctly. How do you prefer spinach? I prefer spinach in a salad with strawberry, red onion, pine nuts, feta and a dressing with Balsamico vinegar, oil, sugar, soy sauce and tabasco.

Thor Bech Johannesen

Motivation As a student at DTU you get to do plenty of project work, however it is mostly carried out individually or in a small group, with very specific goals and a high degree of supervision. iGEM offers the opportunity to work on a much larger project with a high degree of autonomy, where everything from the overall goals and strategy to design of experiments is left for the students to manage. This provides a great opportunity to experience the challenges of actual research projects Major contributions Wiki. How do you prefer spinach? Luminescent and far away from my taste buds.

Advisors

During the project we have had help from a number of university staff and iGEM alumni. These advisors have given us tips on how to use our time efficiently, optimizing protocols and strategies in the lab, and designing the wiki.

Chris Workman		Mogens Kilstrup
	Associate professor, Ph.D., DTU System Biology Chris is the team's main instructor who has put together the team and has given advice from the beginning with brainstorming project ideas until now that the project nears its completion.		Associate professor, DTU Systems Biology Mogens does research within metabolic signaling and regulation in bacteria and has therefore been a treasured knowledge base for team. He has helped us with cloning troubleshooting and tips for culturing bacteria.
Jan Martinussen		Ali Altintas
	Associate professor, DTU Systems Biology Jan does research within metabolic signaling and regulation and has therefore been a treasured knowledge base for team. He has helped us consider various issues related to fluorescence measurements.		Ph.D. student, Graduate engineer, DTU Systems Biology Ali introduced us to the project's main laboratory, and has also been ready with advice inside and outside the lab
Kristian Davidsen		Helen Cook
	Stud. B.Sc. Eng., Biotechnology, DTU Kristian was on the 2013 DTU iGEM team and has a lot laboratory experience and readily shares his knowledge if we have a question regarding a specific protocol, or need help with troubleshooting.		Stud. M.Sc. Eng., Bioinformatics and Systems Biology, DTU Helen has given advice in our project especially with regard to time management as well as design and programming of the wiki.