Back in the summer of 2007, I took part in the Imperial College IGEM team. We produced a cell-free biosensor for detecting catheter associated urinary tract infections by exploiting the AHL quorum sensing mechanism used by bacterial cells for coordinating biofilm formation. More information can be found in our IGEM 2007 Wiki and in our OpenWetWare Wiki. The over-arching objective of our project, however, was to demonstrate the viability of a cell-free chassis for synthetic biology, based on purified cell extracts. To that end, we created a whole new chassis section in the MIT Registry of Standard Biological Parts.

The project was an exciting ride with countless hours in the wetlab, computer lab, and white board, culminating in the IGEM Jamboree held at MIT in early November 2007 where we were awarded a Gold Medal for our efforts. Have a look at our presentation slides and video!

Related links:

Imperial College press release.

IET BioSysBio 2008 follow-up presentation.