Team:EPFL/Contribution
Espress'EAU - Contribution
Hardware components
Our Hardware Team designed different components that are DIY, low-cost and modulable. These different components can be easily taken over from future iGEM teams and readapted for many different projects. More informations can be found on this page . We hope that our work can be of help for the competitions to come!
3D printed parts
In order to place the capsule containing the yeast and the water analyte, 3D-printed holders for the capsule and the sensors were designed along with a cover for the whole device. This allows to keep the other components that are needed for the measurements in place and ensure a solid structure of the device. These components can also be used by future iGEM teams and can change their design as they are available on Github.
Magnetic stirrer
The next essential part is the magnetic stirrer that was built from scratch. A DC motor was connected to two small magnets through a 3D printed part. This allows to use a stir bar in the capsules and keep an homogenous environment during the rehydration of yeast and the water quality tests.
Optical density and fluorescence sensors
These two detectors were also built starting from a few hardware components. The optical density sensor was made with a light-to-frequency converter and a white LED that were placed on two opposite sides of the capsule. This captures a frequency signal that can then be reconverted into an Absorbance value in order to monitor cell growth. Then, based on the red fluorescent protein that was used in the genetically modified reporter strains, a yellow LED and an RGB light sensor placed at 90° to capture the fluorescent signal from the sample.
Special thanks to our sponsors!
Follow us on our social media.
@EPFL iGEM 2020