To lay the foundation for truly impactful innovation, we began with a comprehensive exploration of sustainability in diagnostic interventions. Through a combination of literature research and interviews with diagnostic, public health and community representatives.
Our focus centered on accessibility, affordability and environmental impact aligning with pressing global challenges. Drawing from this input, which included interviews, surveys, and collaborative workshops, we assessed our project’s alignment with the United Nations (UN) Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs). This comprehensive approach ensured we addressed not only health outcomes but also the broader ecological and social implications of our project.
In the following sections, we detail how our project contributes to good health and well-being (Goal 3), industry, innovation, and infrastructure (Goal 9), and responsible consumption and production (Goal 12). Each section integrates stakeholder insights and empirical data to demonstrate our project’s multifaceted impact.
More than 1 million
curable sexually transmitted infections (STIs) are acquired every day worldwide in people 15–49 years old, the majority of which are asymptomatic.[1]
The third UN Sustainable Development Goal (SDG) aims to ensure good health and well-being for all.[2] With more than 1 million new cases of curable STIs daily, early detection remains a critical challenge, particularly in underserved regions. Our project directly supports this goal by enhancing diagnostic access and outcomes.
We specifically address Target 3.3 and Target 3.8.
STIs pose a growing global health threat, with antibiotic resistance complicating treatment. The World Health Organization reports that delayed diagnosis exacerbates spread and resistance, contributing to a public health crisis.[1] Our project enables early intervention, directly supporting Target 3.3 by curbing the epidemic.
During our research phase we identified some improvements in diagnostic techniques for infections. However, the need for portable, user-friendly STI tests still remains as a major challenge. From a worldwide perspective, there is a critical gap: rural and underserved areas lack timely diagnostics due to infrastructure limitations. Even the scientific papers that present new improvements [3], still emphasize the urgency of portable solutions in remote settings. The test’s cell-free design, requiring no lab equipment or electricity, addresses this gap, making it deployable where traditional methods are impractical. This way, we were able to consider the needs of both developed and developing countries, different groups of societies and it was clear that TRACE does, in fact, address them.
User-friendly design and low cost make TRACE accessible for everyone. That's why we strongly believe in its scalability. This design preference was validated through our survey.
Our epidemiological model helped us to gain a better understanding of the long-term impact that TRACE would have on spread. It quantifies the reduced transmission potential and downstream burden when such diagnostics are deployed systematically.
Sexually transmitted infections remain widespread and pose significant public health burdens, especially in low-resource settings. TRACE enables rapid, low-cost, user-friendly testing and detection, reducing barriers to early diagnosis and treatment. It is helping to curb transmission and antibiotic resistance. Our survey results together with prediction of epidemiological model showcases how impactful TRACE can be. This is not just a possibility, this is a solution.
A critical challenge in global public health is the persistent threat of STIs to reproductive health, despite the existence of effective treatments for the majority of cases.[1] This paradox stems from the often asymptomatic nature of these infections, which leads to a significant number of individuals being undiagnosed and untreated.
When left to progress silently, these otherwise treatable infections can cause severe and often irreversible damage. The consequences of untreated STIs are a leading cause of preventable reproductive harm, including:
This gap between treatability and actual treatment outcomes highlights that the challenge is not a lack of cures, but a lack of timely diagnosis.[8] Our project directly targets this problem and therefore supports Target 3.7 by serving as an entry point to reproductive health services. The rapid diagnosis empowers individuals to seek timely treatment and counseling, integrating STI management into broader reproductive health strategies.
Stakeholder input from Spirig from liebesexundsoweiter, an expert in sexual education, highlighted the need for tools that bridge diagnosis and education. Our test includes educational inserts on STI prevention and instructions how users should behave in case of positive results. We also interviewed Prof. Anna Deplazes Zemp for ethical guidance on our project. She made us think about the way we have to communicate with users through our test. She highlighted the importance of mentioning “negative results”. Specifically, she stated that unless our test is not 100% specific, it is ethically wrong to make users believe that their result is negative, meaning they should not be sure that they don't have the infection. This was a very powerful insight for planning our product design as our entrepreneurship process.
TRACE enables earlier detection and treatment of infections, thereby reducing long-term reproductive health complications. Moreover, by lowering the barriers to testing and empowering individuals to know their status, paired with giving emergency information and guidance, our project supports broader access to reproductive and sexual healthcare services. Lowering the STIs diagnostics costs should encourage states to integrate it in national strategies and programmes, for instance by including STI testing into primary healthcare systems. This showcases our full alignment with target 3.7.
Universal health coverage remains elusive, especially in low-income regions where diagnostic costs create significant barriers. In Switzerland health insurance is obligatory for every individual. Its costs are one of the biggest issues that certain demographics face, because despite it being obligatory, healthcare is not covered by the state. Prices for STI diagnostics vary here between USD 100-300. It is not covered by insurance. In Zurich, for example, a program run by facilities like Checkpoint Zurich allows free testing for certain groups. We interviewed Dr. med. Kerstin Wissel from Checkpoint Zurich and got some insight regarding other topics.
Our test’s low-cost production, estimated at under USD 5.- per unit based on material and manufacturing analyses, aligns with Target 3.8. By eliminating the need for expensive infrastructure, it reduces financial barriers, ensuring access for vulnerable populations, including those in conflict zones or poverty-stricken areas.
We strongly believe that NGOs, charities and healthcare providers, including United Nations & WHO’s programmes for resource limited communities will use our project as an opportunity to achieve better health coverage. This way they would be enhancing equitable healthcare delivery. This model has to be co-designed with stakeholders, ensuring cultural and logistical feasibility.
A 173.7% Demand Increase
projected for Point-of-Care Diagnostics by 2032 [9].
The ninth SDG calls for building resilient infrastructure, promoting inclusive and sustainable industrialization, and fostering innovation [10]. Our project is not just an application of synthetic biology; it is a direct response to this call, designed to create an advanced technological platform that is innovative, scalable, and fundamentally accessible, especially valuable for low-resource settings, aligns with Target 9.5 and Target 9.a.
The global shift toward point-of-care diagnostics, driven by a projected 173.7 % growth in demand by 2032, underscores the need for affordable, scalable solutions. In alignment with Target 9.5, our project represents a technological leap in diagnostics. We combine isothermal amplification (RPA), with (a) CRISPR-Cas and (b) DNA Hybridization techniques as detection mechanism , and paper-based assays to first select the best approach to achieve our goals and finally create a tool that is a significant advancement over traditional lab-based methods. As confirmed by our wet lab results, this novel integration provides a sensitive and specific platform that pushes the frontier of field-ready bioengineering. Beyond the technology itself, we aim to democratize research. Our design is fully open-source, providing a blueprint for researchers globally. As Dr. Daniel Richards, senior scientist at Demello Group at ETH Zurich, highlighted in our interview, creating diagnostics for low-resource settings is a major challenge. By sharing our methodology, we empower research and development in regions that need it most.
Our diagnostic platform is also engineered to enable sustainable industrialization, in line with Target 9.a. The use of paper-based materials and cell-free components eliminates the need for a cold chain and complex laboratory equipment, drastically lowering the barrier to production. This design promotes technological sovereignty, allowing communities to build their own diagnostic capacity. By making the test amenable to local manufacturing, we help create resilient healthcare systems that are less vulnerable to the global supply chain disruptions that can cripple centralized, import-dependent models.
Our integration of isothermal DNA amplification technology RPA, CRISPR/Cas detection, and paper-based nucleic acid lateral flow assay paired with DNA hybridization formats embodies a novel application of synthetic biology in diagnostics, advancing the technological frontier of accessible, field-ready bioengineering solutions.
Ultimately, we have created more than a single test; we have developed a diagnostic platform. Its adaptability to other pathogens makes it a resilient piece of health infrastructure. By fostering innovation and enabling local industrialization, our project serves as a model for how synthetic biology can build a more equitable and sustainable future for global health.
Traditional testing for infectious pathogens generates a wide range of healthcare waste, including contaminated cultures, specimens, sharps (like needles), used personal protective equipments (PPE) [13]. Traditional STI testing also relies on multi-component kits with hazardous reagents, contributing to soil and water contamination. Proper segregation, handling, and disposal are crucial to prevent the spread of infection and protect healthcare workers and the environment. Our paper-based test uses biodegradable materials and non-toxic reagents, minimizing chemical release.
Our research on this topic highlighted the urgency of reducing medical waste in low-income settings, where disposal infrastructure is limited [14]. Our design incorporates a disposal protocol, printed on user manual, ensuring compliance with international frameworks like the Basel Convention, directly supporting Target 12.4.
Waste reduction is critical as diagnostic demand grows. Our test’s single-use, paper-based design generates much less waste than traditional testing methods or plastic-based kits, aligning with Target 12.5. By eliminating reusable components requiring sterilization, we reduce resource consumption and landfill pressure.
We participated in Sustainability Week in Zurich, where we gained more knowledge about the aspects that need improvement in diagnostics and healthcare. Feedback from there emphasized the need for scalable waste-minimizing solutions. Our entrepreneurship plan includes collaboration with local manufacturers to recycle paper residues into new diagnostic strips, outlined on the entrepreneurship page, enhances circular economy principles, reinforcing our contribution to Target 12.5.
Paper-based assays reduce reliance on lab cultures, sharps, PPE, specimens, plastic cartridges or reagents that require cold storage. Eliminating cold chain and bulky equipment reduces transport emissions and lowers carbon footprint. Flat, lightweight format generates minimal biohazard waste and the design encourages responsible disposal. Moreover, the choice of paper substrate, that in final product design will be certified sustainably sourced and recyclable, further mitigates environmental impact. While the paper industry has historically been pollutive, modern sustainable practices and recycling can reduce GHG emissions and mitigate water and air pollution.
Our iGEM project addresses multiple SDGs by delivering a sustainable, innovative diagnostic solution. It combats STI epidemics (Goal 3), advances technological capacity (Goal 9) and reduces medical waste (Goal 12). Stakeholder engagement and our experimental results validate its impact, with documented methods enabling future advancements. This holistic approach positions our project as a model for sustainable healthcare innovation.
For further information please visit the United Nations Sustainable Development Goals web site.
The content of this publication has not been approved by the United Nations and does not reflect the views of the United Nations or its officials or Member States.