From 2011.igem.org

Revision as of 01:11, 5 August 2011

Your team picture

Team Members

Advisors: Cody Tramp Asif Rahman Joshua Ellis Undergrads: Sarah Allred Eric Anderson Charles Barentine Victor Carlson Ashlyn Tucker

Cody Tramp Asif Rahman Sarah Allred Eric Anderson Charles Barentine Victor Carlson Utah State Team member 7.png Ashlyn Tucker

Cody Tramp:

Asif Rahman:

Sarah Allred:

	Ashlyn Tucker
	Ashlyn is a sophomore in biological engineering and this is her first year participating on the iGEM team. She currently works as an intern for a company which designs and manufactures microscope slide stainers as well as other medical equipment. While working this job, she discovered her interest in biomechanical engineering. Outside of the achedemic and work spheres, Ashlyn enjoys watching movies, dancing, and participating in outdoor activities. This year for iGEM she was the primary wiki editor as well as a contributor in lab experiments.

What we did

Building upon the CyanoBrick toolkit developed by the 2010 Utah State iGEM team, our project will focus on producing valuable bioproducts using Synechocystis sp. PCC 6803. Our project will attempt to produce 3 different bioproducts: fatty alcohols, wax esters, and alkanes/alkenes. Fatty alcohols and wax esters are used to produce cosmetics, lubricants, and various pharmaceuticals. Fatty alcohols with a 20-carbon chain are used in the cold sore medication Abreva[reference needed], and long chain fatty alcohols have been linked to improved heart health [reference needed]. Alkanes and alkenes are utilized as hydrocarbon fuels. The production of these bioproducts in cyanobacteria will greatly reduce their cost and increase their availability. In addition to producing bioproducts, our project will also provide a more detailed characterization of the promoters and ribosome binding sites (RBS) produced by the 2010 Utah State iGEM Team. Utilizing a dual luciferase expression measurement construct, and reference promoters from E. coli and Synechocystis, our team will more precisely characterize the expression levels of 23 promoters under standard growth conditions, compared with the GFP-based measurements made in 2010. We will also produce useful intermediate parts, which are currently not available through the registry, allowing the dual luciferase expression measurement system to be easily adapted to new organisms and new reference promoters.

Our Sponsers

	Alex Hatch
	Alex Hatch is a senior Biological Engineering student participating with iGEM for the second year. He has been involved in research focused on characterizing micro-diversity in contaminated water aquifers and wastewater treatment facilities. His current research is aimed at harvesting bioplastics produced by engineered E. coli. He is preparing for a career in medicine and will attend medical school upon graduation. He is a Utah native, is married, and has two wonderful children.