Team:Utah State/Results/MedalRequirements

Medal Requirements

Goals

Goals

1. Produce stain-fighting enzymes in E. coli
2. Show that enzymes can help remove stains
3. Immobilize enzymes to bioplastic
4. Create a reusable bioplastic laundry treatment
5. Win 6th straight gold medal
6. Win best manufacturing project

1. To produce stain-fighting enzymes in E. coli, we need to genetically engineer our bacteria using genes that code for the synthesis of our three enzymes: cellulase, amylase, and chlorophyllase. Each construct should include a histidine tag for protein purification. After enzymes are purified, assays with each enzyme’s substrate should be conducted in order to determine if the enzyme is active or not.

2. In order to show that enzymes can remove stains, multiple assays will be conducted to demonstrate each enzyme’s ability to degrade its specific substrate i.e. cellulase degrading cellulose in CMC plates, amylase degrading the starch in starch plates, and chlorophyllase cleaving the phytol tail of chlorophyll to make it water soluble. These assays will provide a proof of concept; pairing this proof of concept with background literature reviews will help demonstrate that enzymes can in fact remove stains.

3. To immobilize enzymes to bioplastic, we can use previous research done at our university regarding the production of bioplastic in E. coli. Instead of attaching GFP to the bioplastic producing genes, we can replace GFP’s spot with each of our enzymes. (Ryan will need to add more here, because I don’t think I fully understand how this works, but I will need to!!) Can also use chemical immobilization as a proof of concept.

4. The objective of creating a reusable bioplastic laundry treatment is to make clothes last longer as well as reduce waste. To create this treatment, we will have to prove that we can immobilize our laundry detergent enzymes to bioplastic. Second, we will have to be able to produce a large amount of immbolized enzyme bioplastic. Last, we will take that bioplastic and either make a spherical structure out of it or apply it to a scrubbing brush.

5. To win our 6th straight gold medal, we will need to make sure to follow the gold medal requirements as well as making sure our project is either novel or improves upon existing iGEM or research projects.

6. In order to win best manufacturing project, we have to make sure that our project exceeds expectations and provides a novel approach to an ongoing problem.