Team:Mingdao/Applied Design

Prototype

GE Mosquitoes

To demonstrate our pathogen blood testing system on a real adult mosquito, we collaborated with NCHU_Taichung iGEM Team 2018 from Taiwan and conducted an experiment of DNA microinjection into adult female mosquito, Aedes aegypti.

In addition to this experiment, we also visited the Mosquito Lab of Prof. Wu-Chun Tu in National Chung Hsing University, Taiwan. We presented our idea and got the valuable feedback from him. Moreover, we learned the physiology and behavior of mosquitoes when sucking and attracted by human blood from Dr. Hau-you Tzeng. The knowledge we learned was turned into our prototype design.

EXPERIMENT at MostNCHU

Make microinjection needles by pulling glass capillary tubes
Anesthetize the adult mosquitoes on ice
Fill the needle with the DNAs in Cellfectin II reagent with E. coli or not
Inject the DNA by inserting into the thorax of the mosquito.
Recover the mosquito for 2 days

RESULT

The mosquito injected with DNA plus E. coli showed fluorescence signal in Gel Imaging System and Blue LED Box after 2 days of DNA microinjection. This result further proved our concept into a reality.

Product Design

Product Safety

Product DM

• So now that the experiments are proven successful, it’s time to take the mosquitoes out for a spin. But we wouldn’t want the mosquitoes flying around spreading diseases. And that’s where the prototype comes in. Our cage-bandage consists of three parts. The first part is a transparent top for observing the mosquitoes. The second part is a fine metal web, sort of like a screen window. The mosquitoes can draw blood through the holes, but can’t wriggle through it. The final part is the bandage, for sticking the device onto skin.

Under View

Top View

Side View

Transparent Window Allows Observation

     

The device is no larger than a matchbox, so it is light enough to be carried in hundreds on a drone. Yet, the box is still large enough to hold more than 20 mosquitoes. The drone would be equipped with a UV light bulb to read the results. The results would then be uploaded to a hard-drive in a world wide database.

Smaller Than a Matchbox

     

There have been people who ask, what happens if a mosquito escape? Well, we have an easy solution. We simple have to pluck off the wings. It can stop the mosquitoes to spread quickly because mosquitoes are terrible at crawling.