Difference between revisions of "Team:Aix-Marseille/Description"

 
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<h1>Description</h1>
 
<h1>Description</h1>
  
<p>Our focus this year is fighting bed bugs, a worldwide invasive pest, which is invading homes and biting humans for their blood. These tiny bugs became harmful to humans from the moment we made caves our homes, as the original hosts of bed bugs were bats. Nowadays humans don’t live in caves, but this temporary troglodyte dwelling came with a cost: fighting against an insect addicted to human blood. While their bite usually don’t transmit any disease, it still induces serious dermatological and allergy issues.<br>
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<p>Our focus is fighting <b>bed bugs</b>, invasive pests distributed worldwide, that are invading homes and biting humans for their blood. These tiny bugs became harmful from the moment humans made their homes in caves, as the original hosts of bed bugs were bats. Nowadays humans don’t live in caves, but this temporary troglodyte dwelling came with a cost: <b>fighting against an insect addicted to human blood</b>. While their bite usually doesn’t transmit any disease, it still induces serious <b>dermatological</b> and <b>allergic problems</b>.<br>
 
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We aim at finding an efficient solution for removing bedbugs from an infested living space. Our strategy consists of two integrated parts: using pheromones as a chemical lure that can attract bedbugs to a trap where they will be eradicated using Beauveria bassiana, a fungus highly virulent to bed bugs but safe for human.<br>
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We want to elaborate an attractive lethal trap for that we need:<br>
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<ul>
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<li> Enhanced Beauveria : Overexpressing chitinase and lipase proteins to increase Beauveria bassiana virulence.</li>
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<li> Produce pheromones in E. coli for the attractive action.</li>
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</ul>
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<p>The breaking bugs project aims to provide a human-friendly, and efficient solution to eliminate bed bugs. The plan is to elaborate an attractive but lethal trap. We will use <b>biologically synthesized pheromones</b> as a chemical lure to attract the bugs into the trap and infect them with <b><i>Beauveria bassiana</i></b> (an entomopathogenic fungus). Then, the infected bugs return to their partners, causing a fatal epidemic even in hard to reach and hidden colonies.<br>
 
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<h3>What is our plan ?</h3><br>
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<h3>The problem ?</h3>
  
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<p>An <b>alternative weaponry</b> must be found to <b>replace the harmful and expensive insecticides</b>, that are now nearly <b>useless against bed bugs</b>. Because of the excessive use of insecticides, the tiny <b>bugs developed multiple resistance mechanisms</b> (exoskeleton thickening and enhanced metabolic pathways to neutralize toxic chemicals such as chlorpyrifos). As a result, pest control companies are obliged to <b>increase the insecticide doses</b> with <b>high risks of toxicity</b> for mammals, birds, aquatic animals, and bees.
<li> To develop our trap, we are going to use the biological properties of the entomopathogenic fungi Beauveria bassiana.
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Beauveria bassiana is used already as way of fight against insects in agriculture, this is already the case in Canada.</li><br>
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<li>Beauveria bassiana is known and used more than hundred years as natural way for insect control in agriculture. Thus there are no risks unacceptable to take into account. On the contrary, the use of pesticides such as chlorpyrifos is authorized in European Union in any knowledge of the very numerous risks of toxicity incurred for the consumers of products of vegetable origin, by adding more the risks for mammals, birds, aquatic animals and bees. More the search moves forward and more we shall find more effective and more respectful ways for our health and the environment, by beginning by using microorganisms such as Beauveria bassiana, to be able to fight naturally against pests.</li><br>
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<h3>The solution : A two-part lethal trap</h3><br>
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<h4>First part</h4>
  
<li>This fungus has a big capacity to penetrate into the protective coating of the bed bug, called cuticle. Once inside the insect, the fungus is going to multiply in its circulatory system and it will engender the death of the insect. Our objective is to improve the fungus so that it is more effective against bed bugs and on a more reduced duration. We want to reduce the lethal dosis, to increase efficiency to cause the death of the bugs. Furthermore, bed bugs are moreover resistant in the external attacks, because of selective pressure led by the excessive use of insecticides. And pesticides are becoming more and more ineffective against bed bugs. Beauveria bassiana is an alive organism which can be adapted to the evolution of bed bugs.</li><br>
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<p>To elaborate our trap, we are going to use the <b>biological properties</b> of an entomopathogenic fungus called <b><i>Beauveria bassiana</i></b>.
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It was first used as a way to fight against insects in agriculture in Canada, and later on, all over the world.  The fungus can penetrate the bed bug's exoskeleton: the cuticle. Firstly, the spore attaches to the cuticle and <b>germinates</b>. Secondly, the spore <b>breaks down a first fatty acids layer</b> using an enzyme: the lipase protein. The fungus keeps going and breaks the second layer: <b>the chitin</b>, using the endochitinase enzyme. Afterward, it reaches the <b>insect's hemolymph</b>, then feeds, multiplies, and releases toxins, causing the <b>bed bug's death </b>. The whole process takes about <b>10 days</b>. Our objective is to <b>aid the fungus</b> to increase its <b>killing speed</b> by adding the lipase and endochitinase proteins and other adjuvants to the attractive trap. We want to <b>reduce the lethal doses (LD50)</b> and kill the bed bugs faster. We aim to produce the different enzymes in <i>E. coli</i> and have them secreted into the media.</p>
  
<li>The pheromones that we plan to use, are chemical molecules produced by the bugs themselves, helping them in their movement mechanism. Beauveria bassiana has a great ability to penetrate the protective layer of a bedbug (i.e. cuticle), leading consequently to death of the insect by altering its circulatory system.</li><br>
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<img src=''https://static.igem.org/mediawiki/2018/9/93/T--Aix-Marseille--BBBBc.png''/>
 
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<h4>Second part</h4>
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<p>Bed bugs produce a specific set of chemical substances called <b>pheromones</b>. They serve as a stimulus to <b>navigate in space and create a path between their preys and their shelters</b>. The plan is to <b>disrupt</b> this path and create a <b>diversion</b> using pheromones that can be found in the <b>bed bugs' feces</b> and exuviae including: <b>benzyl alcohol</b> and <b>DMDS/DMTS</b>.
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We are going to add the various biosynthetic pathways to an <i><b>E. coli</i></b> chassis, this procedure will enable the <b>low-cost production</b> of pheromones using simple substrates (Sugar...) to load the trap.
 
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<h3>Sources</h3>
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<h3>Inspiration</h3>
<p>We used some papers to elaborate our plan </p>
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<ul>
 
<li><a href="https://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/pii/S0022201112001152">A preliminary evaluation of the potential of Beauveria bassiana for bed bug control</a></li>
 
<li><a href="https://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/pii/S0022201112001152">A preliminary evaluation of the potential of Beauveria bassiana for bed bug control</a></li>
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<li><a href="https://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/pii/S2214030115300018">Engineering Escherichia coli for renewable benzyl alcohol production</a></li>
 
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<h3>Read about</h3>
 
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<li><a href="https://2018.igem.org/Team:Aix-Marseille/Design">The design of our project</a></li>
 
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<li><a href="https://2018.igem.org/Team:Aix-Marseille/Experiments">The experiments we did</a></li>
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<li><a href="https://2018.igem.org/Team:Aix-Marseille/Results">Our results</a></li>
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Latest revision as of 20:38, 17 October 2018

Description

Description

Our focus is fighting bed bugs, invasive pests distributed worldwide, that are invading homes and biting humans for their blood. These tiny bugs became harmful from the moment humans made their homes in caves, as the original hosts of bed bugs were bats. Nowadays humans don’t live in caves, but this temporary troglodyte dwelling came with a cost: fighting against an insect addicted to human blood. While their bite usually doesn’t transmit any disease, it still induces serious dermatological and allergic problems.

The breaking bugs project aims to provide a human-friendly, and efficient solution to eliminate bed bugs. The plan is to elaborate an attractive but lethal trap. We will use biologically synthesized pheromones as a chemical lure to attract the bugs into the trap and infect them with Beauveria bassiana (an entomopathogenic fungus). Then, the infected bugs return to their partners, causing a fatal epidemic even in hard to reach and hidden colonies.

The problem ?

An alternative weaponry must be found to replace the harmful and expensive insecticides, that are now nearly useless against bed bugs. Because of the excessive use of insecticides, the tiny bugs developed multiple resistance mechanisms (exoskeleton thickening and enhanced metabolic pathways to neutralize toxic chemicals such as chlorpyrifos). As a result, pest control companies are obliged to increase the insecticide doses with high risks of toxicity for mammals, birds, aquatic animals, and bees.

The solution : A two-part lethal trap


First part

To elaborate our trap, we are going to use the biological properties of an entomopathogenic fungus called Beauveria bassiana. It was first used as a way to fight against insects in agriculture in Canada, and later on, all over the world. The fungus can penetrate the bed bug's exoskeleton: the cuticle. Firstly, the spore attaches to the cuticle and germinates. Secondly, the spore breaks down a first fatty acids layer using an enzyme: the lipase protein. The fungus keeps going and breaks the second layer: the chitin, using the endochitinase enzyme. Afterward, it reaches the insect's hemolymph, then feeds, multiplies, and releases toxins, causing the bed bug's death . The whole process takes about 10 days. Our objective is to aid the fungus to increase its killing speed by adding the lipase and endochitinase proteins and other adjuvants to the attractive trap. We want to reduce the lethal doses (LD50) and kill the bed bugs faster. We aim to produce the different enzymes in E. coli and have them secreted into the media.

Second part

Bed bugs produce a specific set of chemical substances called pheromones. They serve as a stimulus to navigate in space and create a path between their preys and their shelters. The plan is to disrupt this path and create a diversion using pheromones that can be found in the bed bugs' feces and exuviae including: benzyl alcohol and DMDS/DMTS. We are going to add the various biosynthetic pathways to an E. coli chassis, this procedure will enable the low-cost production of pheromones using simple substrates (Sugar...) to load the trap.