Team:UAlberta/Collaborations

Overview

To make biology easier to engineer, standardization and other engineering principles have been adapted for and applied to biological parts. Though, standardization must not only be implemented to parts themselves but also in standardizing the methods we use to test these parts so that direct comparisons of designs are possible.

Thus, the goal of iGEM InterLab studies is to develop standards and protocols for measuring the fluorescence response of fluorescent proteins, a quantity commonly used in evaluating the performance of biological systems. Fluorescent proteins, such as Green Fluorescent Protein (GFP), have become widespread tools as their fluorescence readout can be linked with parameters like gene expression and protein interactions. Although, the lack of a widely accepted standard protocol and variance in measurement instruments, like microplate readers, contributes to the difficulty in comparing fluorescence measurements between instruments and different instances of measurement.

For the 2018 InterLab Study, the variability in fluorescence measurements when assessing a population of cells was investigated and the utility of normalizing measurements to absolute cell count or colony forming units (CFU) was assessed [1]. Team UAlberta accomplished these objectives this by following the InterLab Study protocols to measure the fluorescence and cellular density of eight devices which were calibrated against established standards.

Materials and Methods

The calibration and measurement procedures were performed by the members of Team UAlberta as outlined in the 2018 InterLab Study Protocols. To view the 2018 InterLab Study Protocols, click here. The following protocols describe Team UAlberta’s methods when none was specified by the InterLab protocols and to provide information about the measurement instruments.