Team:Berkeley/Choanoflagellates

From 2010.igem.org

For our project, we focused on delivering protein to a family of single-celled organisms called choanoflagellates. Choanoflagellates were chosen to demonstrate proof-of-concept because they are extremely easy to culture, proliferate quickly and are applicable to evolutionary research. In a lab culture, choanoflagellates eat dead bacteria, live in sea water, survive at room temperature and do not need to be aerated. In our lab, they were grown in petri dishes and stored in a drawer. In addition, these species are interesting to researchers because they are the closest living relative to our microbial ancestor that became the first multicellular animal. Developmental biologists who study these single-celled eukaryotes are hindered by the inability to genetically manipulate them. Attempts at transfection and electroporation have all failed in the past. A mechanism to genetic manipulate choanoflagellates would open an entirely new area of research for developmental biologists.

SEM pictures

Choanoflagellates are so named because of their actin filaments