#907: UofLethbridge iGEM Team Prepares For 10th Trip to Boston

2017 marks the tenth year that the University of Lethbridge has sent iGEM teams to compete at MIT in Boston.

iGEM stands for International Genetically Engineered Machines.

Last year PhD student Taylor Sheahan and her teammates brought home gold for their project, beating out teams from around the globe.

So her hopes are high for this year’s competition.

TAYLOR SHEAHAN:  This year our overarching goal is to provide synthetic biology to the masses.  So to do this, we’re exploring a cell-free system.  So this would include all the necessary bio machines for producing proteins outside a living cell.  So what we’re doing is we’re providing a new tool for synthetic biologists that is also safer, as it is not using a living cell. 

Taylor says the University of Lethbridge has also mentored a team of high school students, and they, too, will be going to Boston.

TAYLOR SHEAHAN:   it’s really exciting that we get to have students from the different come to the University and be there working on ther iGEM projects.    So this year  their project is focused on the biologically producing for printer ink.  

The iGEM competition runs in Boston through the second week in November.