University iGEM Collaborations

1. Oxford University iGEM

We participated with Oxford iGEM via skype calls, where we shared some of our most frequently asked questions from public outreach and saw that the question of how to keep genetically engineered bacteria contained from public release was a consistent question for both projects.
In addition, we shared with them our solution to this problem: 0.2 micron membrane filters from Sterlitech which can be used to make bacteria "pills". We also shared with them our user-friendly generator for markdown versions of the Wiki, in order for their team to more easily edit their Wiki content. The generator can be found here: https://github.com/igemuoftATG/generator-igemwiki

2. OGEM - Ontario Genetically Engineered Machine

OGEM is a consortium of iGEM teams from across Ontario. We met at different campuses over the summer term (at University of Toronto and Queen's University) to discuss how progress was moving along for all of the teams, and most importantly, to discuss any issues or roadblocks the other teams could help with. This lead to collaboration specifically with Waterloo iGEM.

3. Waterloo iGEM

Our partnership with Waterloo iGEM involved bringing copies of their surveys on the public perception of gene editing and genetically modified organisms to Toronto and Alberta, in order to broaden the scope of their research. Their research results also similarly aid our team in gaging what level of knowledge the public tend to have regarding issues such as GMO release, which is useful knowledge for the public outreach of our project.