Team:Berkeley

From 2010.igem.org

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Revision as of 06:07, 27 September 2010

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Abstract
The ability to manipulate the DNA of an organism is vital to many modern fields of biology. While we have perfected this in common research species such as E. coli, yeast and mouse cells, it is still impossible to transform many other species researchers study. Our project is an attempt to develop transgenics ) techniques for a family of single celled organisms called choanoflagellates. These species are interesting to researchers because they are the closest living relative to our microbial ancestor that became the first multicellular animal. Nicole King, here at UC Berkeley, and other researchers across the globe who study these little creatures are hindered by the inability to genetically manipulate them. The Berkeley iGEM 2010 team is applying synthetic biology to this problem. We are engineering bacteria that can deliver DNA into the choano. Choanos are predatory, which makes our job a bit simpler. Once our bacteria is engulfed by the choano, it is programmed to burst using a self-lysis device. Proteins we have placed inside the bacteria will then go into action. First, we have designed a vacuole-buster device that will burst the small food membrane holding the bacteria inside the choano, spewing the contents into the cytoplasm of the cell. In the cytoplasm, a transposon/transposase device tagged with a nuclear localization device will move to the nucleus. In the nucleus, the transposase will splice the transposon into the choanoflagellate DNA.

Our Team

Acknowledgements
We thank our wonderful advisors: Chris Anderson, Terry Johnson, and Tim Hsiau for their guidance and support. We also thank our generous sponsors:

Retrieved from "http://2010.igem.org/Team:Berkeley"

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 {{newtemplateBerkeley}}<br>
-<center> [[Image:Display-o-matic2.png|550px]] </center> <br>
+<center> [[Image:ChoaChoasDeliversyService|550px]] </center> <br>
-<big><font size="5" face="Book Antiqua"> Abstract</font> </big> <br>
+<big><font size="5" face="Comic Sans"> Abstract</font> </big> <br>
-Cell surface display in ''E. coli'' tethers proteins to the outer membrane in order to localize them to the extracellular environment.  While this form of localization has allowed many novel functions to be engineered into ''E. coli'', work within this space relies on a trial and error approach rather than design principles.  We worked to create a foundation of research which would make the rational design of cell surface display systems in ''E. coli''  possible.  We used a combinatorial approach to compare the ability of different display proteins to display different classes of functional proteins.  This required the development and implementation of an automated assembly method able to construct the large number of devices necessary to draw meaningful conclusions about design within this space.
+The ability to manipulate the DNA of an organism is vital to many modern fields of biology. While we have perfected this in common research species such as E. coli, yeast and mouse cells, it is still impossible to transform many other species researchers study. Our project is an attempt to develop transgenics ) techniques for a family of single celled organisms called choanoflagellates. These species are interesting to researchers because they are the closest living relative to our microbial ancestor that became the first multicellular animal. Nicole King, here at UC Berkeley, and other researchers across the globe who study these little creatures are hindered by the inability to genetically manipulate them.
+The Berkeley iGEM 2010 team is applying synthetic biology to this problem. We are engineering bacteria that can deliver DNA into the choano. Choanos are predatory, which makes our job a bit simpler. Once our bacteria is engulfed by the choano, it is programmed to burst using a self-lysis device. Proteins we have placed inside the bacteria will then go into action. First, we have designed a vacuole-buster device that will burst the small food membrane holding the bacteria inside the choano, spewing the contents into the cytoplasm of the cell. In the cytoplasm, a transposon/transposase device tagged with a nuclear localization device will move to the nucleus. In the nucleus, the transposase will splice the transposon into the choanoflagellate DNA.
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 <br>
 <br>
-<center><font size="5" face="Book Antiqua">Our Team</font></center> <br>
+<center><font size="5" face="Comic Sans">Our Team</font></center> <br>
 [[Image:BerkeleyWetlabTeam.jpg|center|600px]]
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 <br>
-<font size="5" face="Book Antiqua">Acknowledgements</font> <br>
+<font size="5" face="Comic Sans">Acknowledgements</font> <br>
-We thank our wonderful advisers: Chris Anderson, Terry Johnson, and Lane Weaver for their guidance and support. We also thank our generous sponsors:<br>
+We thank our wonderful advisors: Chris Anderson, Terry Johnson, and Tim Hsiau for their guidance and support. We also thank our generous sponsors:<br>
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