Team:Newcastle/Meetings/24 February 2010

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Revision as of 22:52, 25 October 2010

Formal Meeting - 24 February 2010

Start time: 3.10-5.35 pm
Room 922
Attendance
- Present: Da (Computer), Harsh, Jannetta, Rachel (Chair), Younus (Minutes), Zoltan, Richard, Steven, Anil, Jen, Matt
- Apologies: Alan, Phil

Updates

iGEM 2010 Team Newcastle Registered
Final Date for Jamboree 5-8th Nov?

SHORTLIST SO FAR:

Project ideas – team members assigned to look into this projects TOP FIVE

[1] Computing DNA - Rachel, Zoltan, Steven

[2] Microcracks in Concrete - Harsh, Da, Alan

[3] BactoNatto, Teeth, Coating spores/BS - Rachel, Younus, Jannetta

[4] Headlice - Richard, Janetta,Phil

[5] Linearising DNA - Richard, Phil, Zoltan

Possible other projects

[A] Diabetes - Da, Younus and Harsh

[B] French Flag - Steven and Zoltan

[C] Putting BS into us?/BS against disease or diseased water? - Richard

Sub-project

[D] MAZef kill switch

DECISION of PROJECT:

Ideal situation: All decide on one project on Friday – Present idea on Wed
Likely situation: Choose top 3 projects – Present on Wed 3rd - formal meeting
If can’t decide on which project – put it to the vote (like last year!)

PRESENTATIONS:

About 5 minutes, 3-4 slides.
Work in assigned groups of three
demonstrate project is viable/explain how it works + problems/issues

Start looking at a lower level i.e. which genes involved
Start looking at modelling languages, SPML, environments?
Use Google Scholar
Major Weakness of many previous iGEM teams – Modelling is tagged onto Lab work. We should perform modelling-informed lab work

TIMELINE:

For the Summary table for AW & JH:

Different Individuals holidays should by included
- For personal and practical issues
- To get a picture of when everyone is available
List of all tasks with hard deadlines highlighted
T-Shirts/Poster – not a single point
Misc?
Team Roster – Finalise who is coming to the Jamboree – twice?

Action Points:

All members to apply for membership for iGEM 2010 Team Newcastle
AW & JW to e-mail Jannetta and Phil about Timeline summary
Visas/Passports – Check whether visas required/If passports in date.
- Zoltan and Harsh –
- British Passport -> don’t need visa but need to fill in online form
- JH, AW and M… already have visas from last years
Complete Data mining
Purchase/try Natto!!!!!

Other businesses:

Harsh’s cheaper/quicker flight to Boston option - Booking has to go through University still. Would be helpful to identify flights

Ideas

[1] Computing DNA

Kill switch
Modifying bacteria so that as they evolve they move closer or further away from answering a problem
Bacteria survive if close to answer [1?], die if further away from answer [0?]
Hamiltonian Pathway

[2] Microcracks in Concrete

Spray bacteria into concrete
spray nutrients, when nutrients run out – forms a polymer/biofilm
fills cracks by producing e.g. polymer, protein, CaCO3 etc.

Difficulty – way of detecting cracks - X-rays
Great wall of China – used rice – still there!
Worlds strongest Glue – Camylobacter cresentus
Spider silk – contracts as it dries – could be like reinforced concrete
Spores germinate when cracks get bigger – start to grow again!
Applications: Cracks in space shuttles, shoes
Advantage over normal glue? BS can get to cracks, where normal glue cannot!
Well-known problem – microcracks will develop into bigger cracks

Chemical engineer would be required

[3]BactoNatto, Teeth, Coating spores/BS

S. mutans binding to ... in teeth -> decay teeth
displace this organism with BS
90 day protection?
Spoon of this - mix into anything?
MIT 2007 -> didnt manage to transform lactobacillus with specific plasmid
Would have to use a computer stimulation of teeth

Chocolate/vanilla/banana flavoured Natto!
Miracal cure
with Fluorides, Omega, Vitamins [D], Minerals etc.

[4] Headlice

Male stomach discs?
Female symbiotic relationship with bacteria
How to introduce BS?
Lice v hard to get rid of
Bacillus Stringensis?

[5] Linearising DNA

bacteria with linear chromosomes/plasmids - Agrobacteria?
Streptomyces ... also has linear DNA
problem of replication - as it is normally bidirectional
Richard's two papers
Flipase/RecA?

[B] French Flag

spatial and temporal organisation-self organisation
bacteria grow in a certain pattern without external stimuli - they decide on the basis of local stimuli
Game of life and Rock, Paper Sissors game by Southampton 2009
See also Osaka2009

@@ Line 10: / Line 10: @@
 *iGEM 2010 Team Newcastle Registered
 *Final Date for Jamboree 5-8th Nov?
 ==== SHORTLIST SO FAR: ====
 '''Project ideas''' – team members assigned to look into this projects
 TOP FIVE
 :[1]	'''Computing DNA''' 			- Rachel, Zoltan, Steven
@@ Line 20: / Line 20: @@
 :[4]	'''Headlice'''			- Richard, Janetta,Phil
 :[5]	'''Linearising DNA''' 			- Richard, Phil, Zoltan
 Possible other projects
 :[A]	'''Diabetes''' 			- Da, Younus and Harsh
 :[B]	'''French Flag'''			- Steven and Zoltan
 :[C]	'''Putting BS into us?/BS against disease or diseased water?''' - Richard
 Sub-project
 :[D]     '''MAZef kill switch'''
 ====DECISION of PROJECT:====
@@ Line 36: / Line 32: @@
 *Likely situation: Choose top 3 projects – Present on Wed 3rd - formal meeting
 *If can’t decide on which project – put it to the vote (like last year!)
 ====PRESENTATIONS:====
@@ Line 47: / Line 42: @@
 *Use Google Scholar
 *Major Weakness of many previous iGEM teams – Modelling is tagged onto Lab work. We should perform modelling-informed lab work
 ====TIMELINE:====
@@ Line 61: / Line 53: @@
 *Team Roster – Finalise who is coming to the Jamboree – twice?
 ==== Action Points:====
@@ Line 73: / Line 63: @@
 #Complete Data mining
 # Purchase/try Natto!!!!!
 ====Other businesses:====
 *Harsh’s cheaper/quicker flight to Boston option - Booking has to go through University still. Would be helpful to identify flights
 ====Ideas====