Team:GreatBay China
Abstract
Nepetalactone is the active ingredient in catnip, a feline attractant, and a potential green pesticide. It has a common precursor, nepetalactol, with monoterpene indole alkaloids (MIAs) which is a group of plant-derived compounds of great therapeutic value, such as vincristine (an anti-cancer drug). We aim to synthesize nepetalactol through a mutualistic division of labour between E. coli and yeast. Besides, we design, characterize, and use a library of transcription activator-like effectors (TALE) stabilized promoters to regulate the heterologous gene expression in E. coli. Our applied design conceives the future application of nepetalactone on stray cat control, which we consider as an opportunity for public engagement and education.
Metabolic engineering can help solve social issues! We envision to apply nepetalactone in stray cats rescue by employing VSD, making the use of synthetic biology readily comprehensible to the public.
Safety has been a crucial concern throughout our project. See our creative approaches to lab safety and biosecurity on Safety page.
We have fantastic parts and we want to share them with the entire iGEM community! Explore our basic parts, composite parts and a brand
See how we have been working in the lab since May! We managed to achieve high yield of geraniol and successful co-culture in the end.
Apart from the lab, we reached out to the community in many ways. We have met lovely people and here is our stories.
Modeling tools aid in the rational design and make the engineered system predictable. Visit this page to take a closer look.
GreatBay_China 2018 consists of 13 students and 7 high schools, 1 instructor, 5 advisors and 2 PIs. Get to know about these lovely people! Also see attributions and collaborations here.
This is a special page to help judges on evaluating the project. Let us show you why we deserve medals and awards.