▼ EDUCATION ▼

Gel Electrophoresis Workshop for Junior Forms

We of St. Paul’s College iGEM team believe that synthetic biology is not just something that happens in a high-tech lab—it is a field built on fundamental principles that can spark excitement in scientists of all ages. A core tenet of our Human Practices has been to share this passion with our community and inspire the next generation of researchers. As such, we were thrilled to host a Gel Electrophoresis Workshop for our Junior Form students on July 4th, 2025.

Why Gel Electrophoresis? The "Integrated" in Our Human Practices Education

Our iGEM project this year involves precise genetic engineering, and gel electrophoresis is one of the most fundamental tools we use daily to verify our work. It is the method by which we prove our concepts. We did not simply choose a random activity; a cornerstone of our own research, simultaneously hands-on and easy to follow, was chosen. This aligns with our Integrated Human Practices philosophy: our outreach reflects and is directly informed by the actual science we do. We wanted to demystify this essential process and show our younger schoolmates the tangible, exciting results that molecular biology can produce.

The Workshop: Theory, Practice, and "Aha!" Moments

The afternoon was buzzing with energy as twenty curious S.2 and S.3 students filled the biology lab. We structured the workshop into three parts:

1. The Interactive Lecture: "What is DNA and how do we see it?"
   We kicked off with a short, visual presentation. Instead of complex jargon, we used analogies by comparing DNA fragments to a Lego model, demonstrating how DNA strands join together. We explained how the electrical current makes the negatively-charged DNA move, creating the beautiful banding patterns we see.
2. Hands-On Lab Session: "Scientists at Work”
   This was the heart of the workshop. Under our guidance, the students got to:
• Set up the gel tank: They helped us assemble the chamber and pour the buffer solution.
• Load their own samples: Using micropipettes (a thrilling first-time experience for most), they carefully loaded dyed practice samples into the wells of an agarose gel.
• Run the gel: We hooked up the power supply and watched as the dye began its journey through the gel matrix.
3. The Reveal: Visualising the Results
   After a short wait, the students gathered around their UV transilluminators. The moment the power switched on was magical. Some wows filled the room as the fluorescent bands glowed bright neon green against the dark background. We helped them interpret the results, identifying which samples had larger or smaller fragments. The abstract concept from the lecture had become a visible reality.

More Than a Technique: Building Bridges

This workshop was about more than just teaching a protocol. It was about:

• Building Confidence: For many, it was their first time using professional lab equipment. Seeing them gain confidence with each pipette stroke was incredibly rewarding.
• Sparking Curiosity: Their endless questions—"What happens if we run it longer?", "How does this relate to your iGEM project?"—showed us that we had successfully ignited their scientific curiosity.

Inspiring 400 Junior Students with our SDG-Driven iGEM Project

As part of our commitment to Integrated Human Practices, our iGEM team had the privilege of addressing nearly 400 Junior Form students at our school on 5 Sept 2025. The goal? To share our project’s vision, demonstrate its alignment with the United Nations Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs), and inspire the next generation of science leaders to act, regardless of how young they are.

Connecting Synthetic Biology to Global Goals

We opened the talk by introducing the global plastic pollution crisis, a challenge which affects ecosystems, wildlife, and human health worldwide. With engaging visuals, we illustrated how microplastics permeate marine environments, food chains, and even drinking water.

We then presented our iGEM project: A synthetic biology approach to enzymatically degrade PET microplastics using engineered bacteria. We then directly linked our work to several key SDGs:

• SDG 12: Responsible Consumption and Production – By breaking down plastic waste, we support a circular economy.
• SDG 14: Life Below Water – Reducing microplastic pollution helps protect marine biodiversity.
• SDG 3: Good Health and Well-being – Cleaner oceans mean safer seafood and water resources.
• SDG 4: Quality Education – We are sharing knowledge and building science capacity within our community.

This framing helped students understand that science is not done in a vacuum, it is instead deeply connected to real-world impact and global policy frameworks.

Encouraging Leadership and Participation

A core message of our talk was that leadership begins with awareness and initiation. We encouraged students to:

• Join science clubs and STEM competitions like iGEM
• Participate in local environmental initiatives and petitions
• Think consciously and critically about sustainability in their daily choices

We also highlighted how platforms like iGEM allow young people to not only learn science but also practice teamwork, communication, and ethical reasoning, all essential skills for future leaders.

Conclusion: Growing Leaders Through Science

This talk was not only a presentation, it was an investment in leadership development. By showing how our science ties into SDGs, we hope to inspire these 400 students to not just become scientists, but informed and proactive global citizens.

Productive Exchange with Tsinghua University iGEM on Waste Valorisation and Plastic Degradation

A cornerstone of the iGEM philosophy is collaboration—the belief that even the most complex global challenges are best tackled by sharing knowledge and building on each other's ideas. In this spirit, our team recently hosted an academic exchange with the Tsinghua University iGEM team. This session provided an invaluable platform to delve into two complementary synthetic biology approaches addressing critical waste streams: agricultural byproducts and plastic pollution.

Part 1: From Waste to Worth: Tsinghua's Innovative Distiller's Grains Solution

The Tsinghua team presented a remarkable project tackling a pervasive issue in China: the recycling of distiller's grains (jiucao). As the world's largest producer of baijiu (a type of Chinese alcohol), China generates over 30 million tons of this wet, fibrous byproduct annually, which is often underutilized and poses a significant disposal challenge.

Their elegant solution involves a dual-microbial system engineered to convert this waste into high-value succinic acid.

• Chassis and Engineering: They employ Trichoderma reesei and Pichia pastoris, genetically modified to express laccase for breaking down tough lignin fibers. The liberated sugars are then fed to an engineered Pseudomonas dominosa strain optimized for succinate synthesis.
• Technical Breakthrough: A key innovation is their success in laboratory evolution to create an acid-resistant strain capable of thriving at pH 4.5 and below, a critical factor for efficient industrial-scale production.
• SDG Alignment: This project powerfully aligns with multiple UN Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs), including SDG 12 (Responsible Consumption and Production) by creating a circular economy model for a major waste stream, and SDG 8 (Decent Work and Economic Growth) by adding value to an agricultural industry.

Part 2: Addressing the Plastic Crisis: Our Marine Microplastic Degradation Project

In turn, our St. Paul's team presented our work on mitigating the global plastic pollution crisis. We outlined the grim fact that 8-14 million tons of plastic enter our oceans each year, breaking down into microplastics which infiltrate ecosystems and food chains, with dire consequences for marine life and human health.

Our project focuses on enhancing the natural degradation of PET plastics using a synthetic biology toolkit.

• The Enzymatic Approach: We are exploring the efficacy of the GP enzyme to depolymerize PET into benign monomers. To boost efficiency, we are co-expressing genes like CsgA (for biofilm formation) and BacBM (a hydrophobin) to improve enzyme-plastic binding.
• Hardware Integration: Recognising that a biological solution needs a delivery platform, we shared our design for a bioreactor unit featuring an alginate-based filter to pre-treat water by chelating heavy metal ions, protecting our engineered microbes.
• Modeling for Optimisation: We discussed our mathematical model, which calculates the trade-off between flow rate and alginate bead quantity, ensuring the system is both effective and efficient.

Convergence of Themes: A Shared Vision for a Sustainable Future

While our targets differ in distiller's grains versus marine plastics, the meeting revealed a powerful common thread, that is to use synthetic biology as means to create a circular bio-economy. Both projects aim to transform waste into valuable products, reducing environmental burden and promoting sustainable practices.

The cross-disciplinary discussion was incredibly fruitful. We engaged in deep dialogue on:

• Experimental Design: Sharing strategies for chassis selection, gene circuit construction, and laboratory evolution.
• Technical Hurdles: Brainstorming solutions to common challenges like enzyme efficiency, metabolic burden, and scaling up processes.
• Human Practices: Exchanging ideas on effective public engagement, educational workshops (for example our gel electrophoresis event), and collaboration with industry and academia to ensure that our projects are responsibly and effectively integrated into society.

This exchange with the talented Tsinghua University iGEM team was not only intellectually stimulating but also reinforced the collaborative nature of the iGEM competition. We left with new insights, renewed inspiration, and a clearer perspective on how our specific project fits into the broader global effort to use science for planetary good.

We extend our sincere gratitude to the Tsinghua iGEM team for their generosity in sharing their work, and for the rigorous scholarly exchange.