Team:XMU-China/Partnership
Because of the global outbreak of COVID-19, the style of communication changes a lot. Our team members participated in the iGEM Southern China Regional Meeting which was held online by Shenzhen University this year. The meeting attracted a dozen teams from south China to introduce their project design and prompted us to establish contact with some other teams after the meeting.
We held several online meetings with CSU-China after the iGEM Southern China Regional Meeting in the design of experiments, modeling and human practices.
As we hope to construct an innovative project, this communication encouraged us to explore in a new field through brainstorming. The meeting was a great impetus for us to turn our attention to the study of “An-tea Glyphosate” using synthetic biology. It is supposed to be beneficial to the development and improvement of our projects in the long run.
Here are some details about the progress we made together to each other’s project.
1.XMU-China → CSU_CHINA:
In human practices, CSU_CHINA inspires XMU-China to ask for teachers’ help and change the way they ask questions when stakeholders were reluctant to accept interviews because of some sensitive issues.
2.CSU_CHINA →XMU-China:
We shared CSU_CHINA with a communicate skill when we had difficulties in talking with interested enterprises, which is talking like a customer.
1.XMU-China → CSU_CHINA:
We provided referenced papers one brick by one brick when they were modeling an amplification system designed by them.
2.CSU_CHINA →XMU-China:
This year XMU-China aims at developing an efficient glyphosate detection and degradation system. The degradation system plans to disintegrate glyphosate into be AMPA to minimize the toxicity. It is meaningful and time-saving to guide us in operating our experiment through establishing an appropriate model.
We developed a further interaction with CSU_CHINA on the modeling of mutated phnJ, and then our team found an easy way to compute the binding energy between our mutation and the endogenous C-P lyase with Rosetta, which enabled us to model on personal computers equipped with normal hardware. Also, CSU_CHINA suggested us to rent a server to run MD to enhance the accuracy of the model.
XMU-China → CSU_CHINA:
This year, CSU-China team aims to utilize engineered Synechocystis as a competent cadmium absorber. But their college are lack of equipments like ICP-MS to quantitatively determine the concentration of the Cadmimum ion. Luckily Xiamen University (University XMU-China belongs) owns equipments including ICP-MS and is willing to help. CSU-China cultured the “absorber” under different OD and time, sent the samples to XMU-China, and XMU-China helps to dissolve and determine the concerntration of Cd2+ through ICP-MS.
Besides, XMU-China gave CSU_CHINA some advice on the design of kill switch by introducing information about the amplification system based on the phi73 delta protein and TA systems, which is about how to ensure the safety of engineering algae.(See the details in: https://2020.igem.org/Team:XMU-China/Design& https://parts.igem.org/Part:BBa_I746352
Xiamen University, Fujian, China
No.422, Siming South Road, Fujian, P.R.China 361005
