Team:Weimar-Heidelberg Arts/Project/BactesSafe

From 2010.igem.org

People are in fear about their properties, their families, their lives. Media and some politicians stoke those fears and produce an atmosphere that brings people to switch the priorities from 'freedom' to 'safety'. And this might have a high price. How do we want to punish people for misbehavior, what would come up if everyone has the possibility to use bacteria and virus for tracing e.g. intruders. Which other secondary effect would an area-wide DNA database have, for example on the employment market. How far are we really willing to go to protect our 'safety'?

Mila Burghardt

Product Description

The BacteSafe® system protects you and your property, at home or at work. This highly personalized system allows you to choose from 5 different security levels, differing in the effect that the specified BacteSafe® virus has on the intruder:
SL 1: color trace on the hands
SL 2: color trace on the face
SL 3: blood count signature that can be traced back to the location of the illegal entry
SL 4: paralysis in one leg
SL 5: sickness, medical attention needed within 48 hours
These security levels can also be combined.

Each BacteSafe® effect can be neutralized by the required anti-virus, which is offered by the police or the owner of the BacteSafe® System that activated the infection.

BacteSafe® consists of:
- the BacteSafe® stop gel for defining the perimeter of the area you want to protect
- the BacteSafe® database terminal for registering permitted visitors and for programming the security system via a connected DNA printer
- the BacteSafe® update gel to transmit the DNA sequences that will keep the system up to date
- the BacteSafe® fungus, programmed with the DNA sequences. It constantly analyses people inside the BacteSafe® area.

If anybody entering the perimeter is not listed in the DNA-library, the fungus becomes visible by turning red and allows fast and easy location of the exact point of trespass. In addition, it responds to the intrusion by ejecting the specified personally-modified virus (according to the chosen security level) which infects the intruder.

Technical Description

BacteSafe® works with a bacterial and viral trace-back system that is executed by a synthetically developed fungus. It is administrated through the database terminal, a computer system with an integrated DNA printer.

For their support of Bactesafe we thank:

hausbau