Assigning online training modules for Tang Hall lab space access for new members
Product Development
New members completed training in circuitry, sensors, and Arduino
Policy & Practices
Started New Member Policy and Practices Training on Integrated Human Practices
Started brainstorming in their respective planning group
Business
Brainstorming in the respective planning group
Introduction to New Member Business Training
Wiki & Design
Introduction to New Member Wiki and Design Training
Assigned Project 1 Design and Figma training
February 2nd to February 8th
Wet Lab
Introduction to Benchling documentation and lab notebook writeup
Introduction to Polymerase Chain Reaction (PCR) Training: PCR in lab training and PCR Primer Design assignment
Product Development
New members applied their training to practice, continued learning about bioreactor design and wiring
Policy & Practices
Completed Integrated Human Practices Training
Started Training on Outreach and Education
Continued working on project brainstorming
Business
Started New Member Education on Market Analysis
Wiki & Design
Continued working on Project 1 Design and Figma
February 9th to February 15th
Wet Lab
February Break: No assignment or training given
Product Development
New members learned CAD software and applied their knowledge to project brainstorming
Reorganized Engineering Learning Lab space
Policy & Practices
Conducted New Member education training on interview process
Continued brainstorming assignments
Business
Conducted Sponsorship search and prepared timeline for grant writing
Continued New Member Education workshop on Business Model
Wiki & Design
Assigned Project 2 GitHub and HTML/CSS New member education
February 16th to February 22nd
Wet Lab
Introduction to Gel Electrophoresis, DNA Cleanup, and Nanodrop Training: In lab training and reviewing PCR Primer Design assignment
Wet Lab members worked on their project proposal for their specific team and presentation
Product Development
Members continued practice with CAD, worked on implementation into project brainstorming hardware design
Policy & Practices
Continued New Member Education workshop on analysis writing
Business
Continued New Member Education training
Started interviews and outreach for brainstorming project
Wiki & Design
Continued working on Project 2 Github and HTML/CSS New Member Education
March 2025
February 23rd to March 1st
Wet Lab
Introduction to Sequence Design Training: Designing your own plasmid and working on Sequence Design worksheet
Continuation of Benchling tutorial + documentation
Product Development
Continued working with Brainstorming groups on proposed hardware
Policy & Practices
Continued brainstorming interviews for multiple possible projects
Finished New Member Education
Business
Continued with New Member Education
Wiki & Design
Continued working on Project 2 Github and HTML/CSS New Member Education
Started working on Project 3 UI/UX and Animations
March 2nd to March 8th
Wet Lab
Introduction for new members on potential research grant opportunities, along with guidance on how to approach professors and lab PIs for research positions
Reviewed Sequence Design assignment
Sent out mid-semester feedback survey to new members
Wet Lab members worked on their project proposal for their specific team and presentation
Product Development
Subteam members were reassigned brainstorming groups if the project did not move forward
Weekly subteam meetings have started
Policy & Practices
Continued interviews for respective brainstorming projects
Started registering for outreach conferences
Business
Started Cost Estimation New Member Education Training
Wiki & Design
Finished working on Project 2 Github and HTML/CSS New Member Education
Continued working on Project 3 UI/UX and Animations
March 9th to March 15th
Wet Lab
Introduction to Golden Gate and Gibson Assembly Training: Gibson Assembly Calculation and Gibson Assembly Assignment
Wet Lab members worked on their project proposal for their specific team and presentation
Product Development
Brainstorming continued as subteam members continued work on the project
Policy & Practices
Prepared for Future of Biology Virtual Conference
Business
Completed potential cost estimations of PRoSPER project for hardware and wet lab
Started grant and sponsorship search
Began Martian bioterrain and competitor’s analysis research
Wiki & Design
New member education continued
Lead worked on timeline and stages of PRoSPER Wiki & Design implementation
Finished working on Project 3 UI/UX and Animations
March 16th to March 22nd
Wet Lab
Introduction to Plate Preparation, Bacterial Transformation, Liquid Culture and Colony PCR
Wet Lab members worked on their project proposal for their specific team and presentation
Product Development
Brainstorming continued as the final brainstorming projects were announced and PRoSPER was chosen
Policy & Practices
Registered for Cornell Splash student educational event
Registered for Syracuse Makerfaire Competition
Business
Had final training
Finalized timeline for business work
Started market analysis and PRoSPER challenges to implementation
Analyzed Intellectual Property possibilities and possible sponsorships
Wiki & Design
Started website mockups
Started design for merch and mascots for project
March 23rd to March 29th
Wet Lab
Finished New Wet Lab Member Training: Assigned members to develop their procedural design protocol
Wet Lab Leads began planning experiments + protocol for project
Product Development
Bioreactor brainstorming and reactor flow optimization for PRoSPER
Policy & Practices
Started planning in-person local events for outreach, including Cornell Splash and CUrself as an Engineer
Started reaching out for interviews
Business
CEAA Grant submitted
Budget reworked to consider new project costs and material requirements
Wiki & Design
Started working on the merch and the PRoSPER mascot
Started new member education of Javascript
April 2025
March 30th to April 5th
Wet Lab
Spring Break: No assignment given for members
Wet Lab Leads continued to plan experiments + protocol for project
Product Development
Spring Break: No assignment given for members
Policy & Practices
Spring Break: No assignment given for members
Business
Spring Break: No assignment given for members
Wiki & Design
Spring Break: No assignment given for members
April 6th to April 12th
Wet Lab
Newly designed computational modeling training for synthetic biology mechanism (Michaelis Menten, Stochastic, Metabolic Flux Analysis, PRoSPER-related modeling)
Walkthrough of tutorial on MATLAB
Franken Meeting with Product Development to discuss collaboration and potential areas of confusion for PRoSPER
Product Development
Continued brainstorming bioreactor
Parts list for reactor was collected for Business
Policy & Practices
Interview with Dr. Lynn Rothschild and Garret Kingman regarding model organism transformation and difficulties with the project
Interviewed Brain Green regarding space ethics and sustainability
Interview Dr. Buz Barstow on microbe mineral interactions
Interviewed David Specht on bacterial transformation
Interviewed Henry Hertzfeld on space policy
Business
Consult with PD and WL on patent possibilities
Research current earth market bioremediation methods
Working on grant applications
Wiki & Design
Completed new member education on Javascript
Continued designing merch and logo
April 13th to April 19th
Wet Lab
Continued PRoSPER experiment planning and beginning material purchasing
Completed in-person Tang Hall safety lab tour with Dr. Shivaun Archer to gain full lab access for new wet lab members
Looked into cyanobacteria transformation and culturing protocol
Completed analysis on pros and cons of different model organisms for PRoSPER
Product Development
Started work on two stage bioreactor implementing E. coli and Synechococcus
Designed additional reactor focused on biofilm support mediums
Policy & Practices
Interviewed Dr. Meredith Silberstein for modeling and ethics
Presented at the OpenBio Conference. Planned future events at Syracuse Makerfaire, the BME Banquet and Sciencenter
Business
Worked and applied to Cultivarium grant
Began fundraising for additional suplies
Wiki & Design
Designed versions of merch and mascot for voting
April 20th to April 26th
Wet Lab
Reviewed Procedural Design assignment with members
Constructed plasmid design (PcrA, PcrBCD, pUS212) and primer design on SnapGene and Benchling
Further literature analysis on other potential gene block components (moA, QDH, DHC) that may be necessary to ensure functionality
Discuss Potential Wet Lab Option routes:
Utilize both D. Aromatica and Synechococcus. (Most Expensive +$1200)
Replace D. Aromatica Function but Keep Synechococcus (~$600 for one)
Replace Synechococcus Function but Keep D. Aromatica (~$600 for one)
Replace both (Cheapest)
Product Development
Focused on narrowing scope of bioreactor and different iterations of microbe integration
Started preparing carrier material and colonization protocols
Policy & Practices
Met with Business subteam for stakeholder analysis
Interviewed Johanness Lehmann for bioreactor design
Business
Continued review of literature on perchlorate bioremediation and space market
Met with policy and practices subteam for stakeholder analysis
Wiki & Design
Started collaboration with Product Development for Arduino software integration
Started preparation for web development
May 2025
April 27th to May 3rd
Wet Lab
Ordered primers from IDT to beginning preparation process and resuspension
Ensured optimized primer design on Benchling: simulated and verified melting and annealing temperature on Benchling to ensure primer binding efficacy
Finalized PRoSPER Plasmid Design with necessary gene blocks components and selective marker
Discussion on potentially conducting a Synechococcus transformation, however, will be very difficult due to structural differences of cyanobacteria
Product Development
Decisions on bioreaction made with fixed bed reactor and cartridge design
Summer plans formed in terms of CAD, soil flow through set up and inoculation
Collab with Wiki continued on Arduino circuit set up and bluetooth integration
Finalizing 3D Model and starting to 3D print respective components
Policy & Practices
Set up interviews in policy, ethics and wet lab application
Interviewed Robert Zubrin in ethics and overall efficiency
Interviewed Adam Arkin in model organism separation
Interviewed Daniel Buckley in soil flow through
Interviewed Sophia Windemuth in E. coli lipoprotein knockout strain use
Interviewed Dr. Chris Mason on the broader applications of PRoSPER
Presented at MakerFaire Conference
Business
Continued review of literature on alternative methods of perchlorate removal and why synthetic biology/bioremediation
Confirmed expansion of iGEM budget from Cornell Project Teams
Wiki & Design
Finalized merch and mascot design
May 4th to May 10th
Wet Lab
General PRoSPER Wet Lab overview during G-Body to help other subteam members understand the technical components of the project and the underlying genetic engineering processes
Communication with iGEM Alumni Sophia Windemuth to acquire lipoprotein knockout E. coli strain. She sent over her electroporation and transformation protocol to increase our transformation efficiency due to large size of pcrA.
Product Development
No updates due to break period due to final exam season
Policy & Practices
Set up interviews in bioreactor development
Interviewed Dr. Sijin Li on bioreactor system modification
Interviewed Dr. Hans Carlson on the development of a separated but linked reactor
Interviewed Dr. Bruce Rittmann on the possibility of a biofilm based reactor
Business
No updates due to break period due to final exam season
Wiki & Design
No updates due to break period due to final exam season
May 11th to May 17th
Wet Lab
No updates due to break period due to final exam season
Leads worked on ordering plasmid and primer components and planning summer experimental timeline
Product Development
No updates due to break period due to final exam season
Policy & Practices
No updates due to break period due to final exam season
Business
No updates due to break period due to final exam season
Wiki & Design
No updates due to break period due to final exam season
May 18th to May 24th
Wet Lab
No updates due to break period
Leads worked on ordering plasmid and primer components and planning summer experimental timeline
Product Development
No updates due to break period
Policy & Practices
No updates due to break period
Business
No updates due to break period
Wiki & Design
No updates due to break period
May 25th to May 31st
Wet Lab
No updates due to break period
Leads worked on ordering plasmid and primer components and planning summer experimental timeline
Product Development
No updates due to break period
Leads worked on finalizing summer technical timeline
Started new bioreactor design based on Spring interviews
Policy & Practices
No updates due to break period
Leads worked on finalizing summer timeline
Continued reaching out for educational events over the summer
Developing documentation plan
Business
No updates due to break period
Leads worked on finalizing summer timeline
Started revising and planning full business plan outline
Wiki & Design
No updates due to break period
Leads worked on finalizing summer timeline
June 2025
June 1st to June 7th
Wet Lab
Ordered DNA Parts (Backbone, Gene Block, Gene of Interest), ingredients for Synechococcus Medium (including seawater)
Discussed plans for next 3 weeks:
Create frozen stocks of E. coli and Synechococcus (whenever it comes in)
DNA assembly and create plasmids
Transform! Then run assays to determine what is being expressed
Split the team into three different groups (buddy system) to work on varying components of the project
Conducted further literature review on cyanobacteria transformation and culturing protocol
Product Development
Continued new bioreactor design with primitive designs for the growth chamber based on Spring interviews, presented to General Body
Started implementing ways to make carrier plates removable and chloride sensor implementation
Policy & Practices
Started focusing on education and outreach, and reached out to the local Sciencenter and Longview Senior Living Community
Business
Started coordinating with the Cultivarium grant on receiving materials for Wet Lab
Received 1000 USD in financial support and a strain of Synechococcus
Wiki & Design
Started to update Cornell project team website with the project and recruitment
June 8th to June 14th
Wet Lab
Prepped for the start of summer, made LB broth, LB Antibiotic plates, Grew Nissle 1917 no knockout and Δlpp cells (received from Sophia). Made frozen glycerol stocks of both E. coli cells
Completed Plasmid design for pU212 + PcrA + TAT + 6x His Tag
Product Development
Soil flowthrough model completed
Order placed for LED panel, airpumps and heat pad
Started preparing perchlorate detection with methylene blue protocol 1.0
Continued collaboration with Wiki using an HC-06 bluetooth module and Arduino Pro Micro
Policy & Practices
Planned the Science Center interactive stations
Started interview outreach and Q&A documentation
Business
Continued work on perchlorate soil on Mars and Global warming in relation to space colonization
Wiki & Design
Ordered merch
Started Arduino implementation via a phone app
June 15th to June 21st
Wet Lab
Subteam members prepared more LB broth for PD experiments and future liquid culture
Completed Mini-Perchlorate with E.Coli Experiment: Measured OD600 (Concentration/Density of Bacteria Culture) over the course of 4 hours in varying perchlorate concentration solutions to evaluate E. coli co-culture conditions/growth
Received Zymo Research Grant
Product Development
Printed inoculation testing and started collaboration with WL to implement testing
Continued Wiki collab to implement HC-06 Bluetooth module with an Arduino Pro Micro and an android interface
Split workload into the structural team and the electronics team
Policy & Practices
Started storyboarding children’s book plot of Chloe the E. coli cleaning her spaceship of “dirty” soil
Added illustrations and reached out to professors for interviews
Conducted Sciencenter Outreach, reaching 64 children and their families!
Business
Continued work on Global Innovation Challenge grant with revisions
Continued business plan and started analysis on biofouling and other non-bioremediation methods of perchlorate removal
Wiki & Design
Continued work on wireless Arduino bioreactor integration
Began designing Wiki
June 22nd to June 28th
Wet Lab
Made more LB broth for cell culturing, Grew E. coli with pUS212 backbone, miniprepped and nanodropped result, did gel to confirm the result (not so promising)
Continued working on trouble shooting: likely did not add enough ethidium bromide as bands did not show up on gel
SnapGene tutorial on how to make geneblocks and also assigned SnapGene assignment
Product Development
3D printing Falcon tube design
Continued working on modeling for bioreactor
Ordered parts for sensors and circuits
Policy & Practices
Interviewed Professor Jonathan Russell-Anelli: provided insight into challenges of growing plants in low-gravity systems especially around water movement, soil saturation, and nutrient delivery
Brainstormed YouTube content and filmed protocol for making an agarose gel for gel electrophoresis
Business
Finished grant writing from the past two weeks
Continued writing business plan and assigning sections for each business member to focus on
Continue working with PNP to evaluate stakeholders and bioterrain details
Wiki & Design
Finalized merch cost and plans
Updating iGEM website except for project description
Designed Figma mock up for wiki page
Troubleshooting with Arduino team: determining extent of control, user interface, but still progress made
July 2025
June 29th to July 5th
Wet Lab
Subteam members prepared agar plates with erythromycin. They also grew a liquid culture of the E. coli that contained the pUS212 plasmid, and completed a plasmid miniprep procedure
Zymo Research order placed and will be arriving in the coming week
Beginning Wet Lab Modeling for PRoSPER
Conducted transformation troubling and beginning assembly of construct 2 containing pcrBCD
Product Development
pH sensor testing for electronic team
Frankenmeeting with Wiki to discuss Arduino connection to bioreactor
Policy & Practices
Collaborated with Business subteam to understand Martian bioterrain document
Recorded kids’ PRoSPER educational video and started video editing
Conducted interview with Deb Grantham; filled out Q&A document
Business
Continued progress on business plan
Writing up new grants and placing greater emphasis on sponsors
Wiki & Design
Progress on web development
July 6th to July 12th
Wet Lab
Subteam members performed PCR on the purified pUS212 plasmid
Discussion of TetR inducible system: using tetracycline as an activator to express PcrA construct
Product Development
Interview with Professor Hay to discuss biofilm reactor experimental setup and optimize biofilm formation
Begin soldering motor and sensor circuit
Policy & Practices
Children’s book translation done
Recorded video explaining what bacteria/plasmid is and how transformation works
Made Q&A doc for Morgan Irons
Worked with Business subteam on document with major problems of PRoSPER
Business
Finished grant writing and also doing more research to resolve “why synbio” issues
Wiki & Design
Working on Arduino front and backend to decide if we want to use a website or app to control the device
July 13th to July 19th
Wet Lab
Gibson assembly of pcrA geneblock into pUS212 backbone and transformation into E. coli
Product Development
Conducted inoculation testing for the whole week
Ordered glass wool and also worked with WL to order Curli Gene Plasmid for biofilm formation
Ensuring the bioreactor design is fully modularized and can be easily replaced through “Magsafe”
Conduct Bluetooth Module Testing and ordered perchlorate sensor
Policy & Practices
Interview with Morgan Irons; filled out Q&A doc
Lead Longview Senior Living Community outreach
Recorded PRoSPER children’s book read-out-loud online
PNP meeting with Business subteam members to discuss major issues/viability/ethicality of our project
Led outreach event at Ithaca Sciencenter to introduce idea of synthetic biology
Business
Continued research on “why sybio” questions
Received Cultivarium strain for Synechococcus and Zymo Research feature!
Wiki & Design
Finalized PRoSPER mascot: Muno and Bars!!!
July 20th to July 26th
Wet Lab
Gibson and transformation was re-attempted with CaCl2 competent cells
Worked on expense list for 2025 - 2026 budget
Product Development
LED module completed
Upgrades to Circuit Design:
Full system powered by laptop charger
5V and 12V circuits
Stepless adjustment of brightness and heat intensity
Begin research on ANSYS Fluid Modeling
Policy & Practices
Addressed documentation feedback on gaps in project
Business
Cultivarium grant received
Worked on 2025-2026 budget expenses with team leads and Project Team Administration
Wiki & Design
Continued web development and Arduino team progress
Began preparing for recruitment
August 2025
July 27th to August 2nd
Wet Lab
PCR, gel verification, DNPI digest, and DNA cleanup were conducted for pUS212 backbone, pcrB, pcrC, and pcrD gene blocks. Gibson and transformation were attempted into CaCl2 competent Nissle E. coli cells
Synechococcus arrived therefore WL has started creating the media and begun the culturing process
Product Development
Finished 2 x 12w heat pad parallel testing Made Heating and Motor Module
Finished 1st Full Structure Assembly
Finished Sensor circuit integration
Policy & Practices
Reached out for Synechococcus/cyanobacteria interviews and closing the loop email to Dr. Jonathan Russell-Anelli
Business
Ansa Biotechnologies Grant submitted
Continued research on “why sybio” questions
IP works with PD Collab
Wiki & Design
Started the code for Figma mockup
Researched feasibility and design of subteam page animation
Released merch order form
August 3rd to August 9th
Wet Lab
Three liquid cultures and frozen stocks of the transformed cells were prepared: Nissle ∆lpp knockout cells with pcrA, Nissle no knockout cells with pcrA, and Nissle no knockout cells with pcrBCD
Subteam members prepared Synechococcus media and started liquid cultures
Conducted an interview with PNP for Dr. Beth Ahner
Product Development
Determined main structural material needed for PA12-GF or Onyx from Markforged
Policy & Practices
Interviewed Dr. Beth Ahner about soil characteristics
Business
Received Ansa Biotechnologies Grant!
Continued work on business plan
Wiki & Design
Merch Interest form released!
August 10th to August 16th
Wet Lab
No updates due to the end of summer work session
Leads worked on planning experiments and protocol for upcoming fall semester steps
Product Development
No updates due to the end of summer work session
Policy & Practices
No updates due to the end of summer work session
Business
No updates due to the end of summer work session
Wiki & Design
No updates due to the end of summer work session
August 17th to August 23rd
Wet Lab
No updates due to the end of summer work session
Leads worked on planning experiments and protocol for upcoming fall semester steps
Product Development
No updates due to the end of summer work session
Policy & Practices
No updates due to the end of summer work session
Business
No updates due to the end of summer work session
Wiki & Design
No updates due to the end of summer work session
August 24th to August 30th
Wet Lab
Subteam recap for work over summer:
Three constructs: pcrA, pcrBCD, Curli
Curli quantification with GFP
Continue Synechococcus culture and potential testing with E. coli media
Product Development
Subteam recap for work over summer
Finished up fully modular reactor (switch between photobioreactor and biofilm reactor)
Full circuits integrated and Bluetooth module
Module w/ Magpin for heating/COB LED/Pump
Policy & Practices
Subteam recap for work over summer
Podcast launched!!!
Continued social media presence (e.g. Linkedin activated, Instagram presence)
Finished up Children’s book and complete translation
Finished up Youtube videos and completed Ethics handbook
Outreach Event: Science Science, Longview Senior Living Community, Mini North American Jamboree
Conducted more interviews with perchlorate experts, ethics, policy, and cyanobacteria
Business
Subteam recap for work over summer
Received Cultivarium + Zymo Research + Ansa Biotechnologies Grants
Submitted Amazon x Social Shifters Grant
Continued working on Biz Plan for PRoSPER Problems and market analysis
Wiki & Design
Subteam recap for work over summer
Begin collecting team bios for Wiki
Continued Troubleshooting Arduino work
Continued web development for Wiki
September 2025
August 31st to September 6th
Wet Lab
CaCl2 competent cells were prepared for transformations
Discussed protein confirmed method for pcrABCD (Cell Fractionation and SDS-PAGE)
Product Development
Finished CAD design for Agitator Motor Mount and Biofilm Carrier
Performed Pump Modulus Testing
Working on Soil Flowthrough Performance data collection
Policy & Practices
Conducted closing the loop interviews with Jonathan Russell-Anelli, Buz Barstown, Chris Mason, and Rosa Santomartino
Created PDFs of translated children's book
Made infographics for the LinkedIn page, edited Youtube videos, and Instagram post
Recorded podcast with Stony Brook
Business
Working on business plan and making infographics
Wiki & Design
Continued work on web development and Arduino with PD
Assigned Wiki pages to each Wiki member to work on
September 7th to September 13th
Wet Lab
The pcrBCD plasmid was miniprepped from DH5-α. A heat shock transformation was performed to transform pcrBCD into Nissle ∆lpp knockout E. coli cells
Finalized design for Ansa Biotechnologies plasmid (final construct containing full functionality alongside Curli gene)
Product Development
Added ambient light, indicator for bluetooth connection and reactor status into bioreactor interface
Performed Pump Modulus Testing
Continuing work on continued LED and heat module testing
Policy & Practices
Reached out to Senior Center for collaboration
Children book translations are all completed
Business
Will receive Ansa Biotechnologies Grant in two weeks
Wiki & Design
Ordered merch and stickers
Uploaded photos from recruitment events
Continued Arduino work
September 14th to September 20th
Wet Lab
Liquid cultures of the seven transformed strains of E. coli were prepared. These strains were: curli in DH5-α, pcrA in DH5-α, pcrA in Nissle ∆lpp, pcrA in Nissle no knockout, pcrBCD in DH5-α, pcrBCD in Nissle ∆lpp, and pcrBCD in Nissle no knockout. Tetracycline was added to the pcrA and pcrBCD transformed strains to induce protein production.
Product Development
Updated Motor H Bridge and completed testing
Tested perchlorate sensor
Continued structure printing of bioreactor (4 more modules printed) and testing
Policy & Practices
Closing-the-loop emails sent out to interviewees from Spring and Summer
Filmed and edited podcast episodes
Planned Senior Center collaboration for late September or early October
Business
Meeting with Ansa Biotechnologies to discuss project overview
Worked on project financials, risk analysis and market overview
Wiki & Design
Designed slider for LED light in Arduino
September 21st to September 27th
Wet Lab
Cell fractionation was performed on the pcrA and pcrBCD transformed strains to separate the periplasmic and cytosolic components of the cell. A His-Spin protein miniprep was performed to purify proteins with His-tag. Finally, an SDS-PAGE gel electrophoresis was performed to verify the expression of the pcrA and pcrBCD subunits in the transformed E. coli
Product Development
Tested soil flowthrough performance using 45 mL of water for 20 g of soil; perchlorate washing efficiency exceeded 90%
Collected COB LED module power data — max 10 min energy consumption reached 6292 mWh; ran at 10% power (~1004 mWh)
Upgraded mainboard with M2 and M3 mounting, hidden wiring, an integrated switch, and added heatsink
Completed full circuit setup for Synechococcus growth chamber
Fabricated pump module with bubbler version and upgraded motor H-bridge
Policy & Practices
Made synthetic biology-themed bingo game for outreach event at Longview Senior Living Community
Researched environmental bills for policy project
Drafting letters to pass environmentally conscious legislation
Continued work on Instagram, Youtube, LinkedIn and Spotify
Business
Worked on infographics for Wiki
Worked on project financials with PD and WL
Wiki & Design
Added features to Arduino graphic user interface
Continuing web development progress
October 2025
September 28th to October 4th
Wet Lab
The pcrA, pcrB, pcrC, and pcrD geneblocks were amplified using PCR and gel electrophoresis was used to confirm that the correct sequence was amplified. DNP1 digestion and DNA clean up was used to purify all of the PCR products. Gibson assembly was used to combine the plasmid backbone with the pcrA geneblock to create the pcrA construct. Gibson was also used to combine the plasmid backbone with the pcrB, pcrC, and pcrD geneblocks to create the pcrBCD construct. Two different types of E. coli strains were cultured: Nissle Δlpp and Nissle no Δ. Then CaCl2 was used to ensure competency for both strains in preparation for transformation. Transformation of pUS212-pcrA was successful. Small colonies appeared on the plate after 1 night.
Product Development
Full system wet lab test run completed with Synechococcus
Continued soil flow-through testing
Policy & Practices
Drafted up letters to policymakers based on environmental bill research from last week, urging them to vote in favor of a bill that has to do with supporting the environment and combating climate change
Continued with YouTube, Podcast, Instagram, and LinkedIn efforts
Business
Completed meeting with Zymo
Continued documentation writeup for Wiki
Wiki & Design
Finished up PD collaboration on Arduino
Preparations for Wiki Freeze
October 5th to October 8th
Wet Lab
Performed cell fractionation for the pcrA and pcrBCD colonies and following this step, the samples were run on a SDS-PAGE Gel to confirm protein expression
Planned out bacterial growth experiment (OD600) for Synechococcus to be grown in E. coli media to test co-culture conditions
Worked on finishing up documentation for wiki page and also updating our lab notebooks
Product Development
Completed documentation and finalized figures
Completed operation manual and associated write up
Completed soil flow through testing
Policy & Practices
Edited documentation and ensure all elements present on pages
Continue posting content that has been created and edited
Business
Completed documentation and other business analyses
Created infographics to reflect analyses of business plan
Wiki & Design
Prepared for Wiki Freeze
Made additional infographics and animation for subteams
