We acknowledge that our project couldn't have been completed without the support and generosity of others who shared their work publicly. The accessibility and truth recorded by scientists enable the development of new and ongoing innovations for people from diverse backgrounds.
This is why we made sure to record both our successes and failures throughout our entire journey. These experiences offer insight into how the project can be synthesized successfully so others can build on it and make it more efficient for future users. We implemented four basic and two composite parts, each thoroughly documented in the iGEM Registry for future teams to reference when working on similar projects.
As a research team working in the fight against HIV, we are not only responsible for scientific innovation but also for actively supporting and advocating for the HIV community — including people living with HIV, caregivers, and fellow researchers.
One of our most prominent initiatives was an IRB-approved survey that we designed and distributed to researchers in New York City and Long Island. The survey aimed to gather data about the effects of national research budget cuts and the uncertainty of future funding. Our goal was to shed light on these consequences — halted clinical trials, lost jobs, and abandoned studies — and to advocate for the redistribution of federal funding for HIV research.
We also engaged directly with the community, participating in events such as the NYC Pride Parade, where we spoke with over 100 attendees, distributed educational materials, and promoted HIV awareness to help reduce stigma. Additionally, we partnered with the Center for Prevention and Outreach (CPO) at Stony Brook University to host an interactive event focused on HIV awareness and sex education, encouraging open, stigma-free conversations.
We also consulted with experts such as Dr. Susan Morgello of the Manhattan HIV Brain Bank, who provided valuable insights into HIV as a multisystemic disease and the challenges of treating viral reservoirs from both clinical and patient perspectives.
While we recognize that scientific impact takes time, we wanted to make an immediate difference for those affected by HIV. Therefore, we pledged 10% of all funds raised to the Alliance for Positive Change — an organization that provides essential diagnostic, relief, and support services for people living with HIV. This pledge amounted to $300 as of October 8, 2025.
Implementing Cas13a in a fusion system for targeted delivery introduced several major challenges that future iGEM teams can build upon. Our fusion protein — though partially fragmented and degraded — showed initial success in cloning and expression. We also demonstrated that fusion protein designs such as ours can be tagged, purified, and expressed in detectable quantities for downstream analysis.
Key takeaways for future teams: