UNews - Karin Otero

U of L iGEM team golden, now focussed on furthering project with Lethbridge Fire and EMS

trevor.kenney — Fri, 18 Nov 2016 18:10:55 +0000

Their project is once again golden and now the ��Ѹ��Դ��߿�Ƭ of Lethbridge iGEM team is excited to embark on the next phase – determining if and how their plan to improve the cleanliness of emergency medical vehicles is feasible.

“Our presentation went really well, we had a lot of positive feedback and a lot of interest around how feasible it would be for EMS to actually implement the system,” says first-year PhD student Taylor Sheahan after her team returned from the International Genetically Engineered Machines (iGEM) World Jamboree in Boston, Mass. with a gold medal in tow.

The team was tasked with characterizing the microbial community within ambulances and then developing an intuitive antibody-based strip test for real-time monitoring of the vehicles’ cleanliness. Pictured here are (L to R) Keith Aiken, Rhys Hakstol, Suneet Khary, Taylor Sheahan and Graeme Glaister.

The team was tasked with characterizing the microbial community within ambulances and then developing an intuitive antibody-based strip test for real-time monitoring of the vehicles’ cleanliness.

“We are not only thinking of providing clean orderly EMS units for best practice clinical care for people we meet and transport; we are also thinking of our staff, their families and the potential transport of infection to other patients and health-care facilities we serve,” says Ward Eggli, EMS Resource Officer with Lethbridge Fire and Emergency Services.

While the system the iGEM team created has proven to be effective, Sheahan says that more work needs to be done before it can actually be used in the field.

“We’re still in such an early stage of our work that there is a lot to be done to get to that point where we can actually see if they are cleaning effectively or whether we could compare two different cleaning products,” she says.

Sheahan is a Catholic Central High School product who earned bachelor and master degrees at Queen’s and Western ��Ѹ��Դ��߿�Ƭ respectively before joining Dr. Hans-Joachim Wieden’s lab.

“What we know today that we did not know before is that we have many types of pathogens in the back of our units,” adds Eggli. “We can now focus on best practice cleaning techniques, frequency and using products that affect these pathogens.”

The fact the project was community-driven and seeks to solve a real problem garnered praise from the judges in Boston. This aspect has been a focus of iGEM in recent years and something the U of L has excelled at, winning gold at each of the last four competitions. In particular, the Federal Bureau of Investigation and the Public Health Agency of Canada expressed interest in following the project as it continues.

“It’s key at the beginning of projects like this to actually identify a real problem that needs to be solved to benefit the community,” says Sheahan, whose group was approached by Lethbridge Fire and Emergency Medical Services in May to look at the cleanliness of their vehicles and to assist with their methods of cleaning. “I think it’s important for an iGEM project to be focused on a real problem, so you’re not just using cool science, but producing a tangible benefit.”

The two groups will continue to work together in the coming months.

“We plan on testing products and practices to see how we can best affect the pathogens we now know are in the back of our units,” says Eggli. “We have identified a few products that can kill pathogens long after they first have been applied and we want to know how long they’re effective after application and what might affect that product if left without reapplication. We can only complete this through a continued relationship with the U of L and their researchers.”

Wieden, the iGEM supervisor and director of the Alberta RNA Research and Training Institute, says the U of L continues to impress on the world stage, despite competing against teams from established engineering schools.

“In the 10 years we have been competing at iGEM, we have managed to win nine gold medals, which really is remarkable and speaks to the quality of our students, how they work with one another and how they pass that along from year to year,” says Wieden. “It also says that we are solving some real challenges and making a difference in society.”

The full U of L iGEM team consists of Sheahan, Graeme Glaister, Rhys Hakstol, Sydnee Calhoun, Keith Aiken, Suneet Kharey, Courtney McDermott and Karin Otero. Wieden is the supervisor and principal investigator, while Drs. Andy Hudson, Cesar Rodriguez (Florida State ��Ѹ��Դ��߿�Ƭ) and Glaister are team advisors.

In addition to the U of L iGEM team, the Lethbridge High School iGEM team was awarded a bronze medal for their work on a rapid wound treatment system.

U of L iGEM team gears up for Boston with win at aGEM competition

trevor.kenney — Mon, 17 Oct 2016 19:48:36 +0000

The ��Ѹ��Դ��߿�Ƭ of Lethbridge’s International Genetically Engineered Machine (iGEM) team warmed up for the upcoming iGEM Giant Jamboree by taking first place in the collegiate division of the Alberta Genetically Engineered Machines (aGEM) competition in Calgary recently.

Using the aGEM event as a tune-up opportunity to hone its presentation for the Giant Jamboree in a mock competition setting, the U of L team placed first in the collegiate division and also received special awards in the areas of Human Practices and Demonstrated Knowledge. Second place in the collegiate division went to the host ��Ѹ��Դ��߿�Ƭ of Calgary team.

The U of L iGEM team (l to r) Dr. Andy Hudson, Keith Aiken, Taylor Sheahan, Graeme Glaister, Karin Otero, Suneet Kharey, Rhys Hakstol and Courtney McDermott.

“aGEM provides Alberta teams with a unique advantage as we are able to get meaningful feedback from judges who will be at the international competition in Boston,” says Graeme Glaister, a fourth-year neuroscience student, who will be competing in his fourth iGEM contest.

The iGEM competition is a worldwide synthetic biology competition started by the Massachusetts Institute of Technology (MIT), and is now the main program at the iGEM Foundation. Competing for the past nine years, U of L teams have excelled on the world stage, leading all Canadian teams by winning eight gold medals for their innovative work. This year’s competition takes place Oct. 27-31 in Boston, MA.

The project the U of L team is tackling involves creating an easy-to-use and cost-effective kit for the rapid detection and monitoring of newly emerging germs in ambulances and health-care facilities.

“I’m very excited about this project because it was really informed by the needs of the community,” says Dr. Hans-Joachim Wieden, chemistry and biochemistry researcher, Alberta Innovates Technology Futures Strategic Chair in Bioengineering, and iGEM supervisor. “When scientists and community members sit down to define a problem, it can result in a very productive collaboration. This iGEM team is demonstrating the ways that cutting-edge synthetic biology and fundamental biomolecular research can have a truly beneficial impact on our communities, particularly in the areas of health and medicine."

Lethbridge Fire and Emergency Medical Services contacted the U of L iGEM team to determine if their current cleaning practices were adequate. The team met with paramedics, surveyed them about areas of concern and participated in ride-alongs with emergency medical workers to better appreciate the situations faced daily by first responders. These steps helped shape the project and determine its scope, with the goal of determining if emergency medical vehicles are indeed reservoirs for pathogens.

"We are very excited to know more about what is found and how we can affect it,” says Ward Eggli, EMS Resource Officer with Lethbridge Fire and Emergence Services. “We are looking at other cleaning practices, just to determine best practice, once we find out the results. It would be nice to know if we can affect sick time with our own staff, to give some peace of mind to the wives and children we have at home, and to know that what we’re bringing home is minimized in some way.”

Using cutting-edge, in-house DNA sequencing technology to aid in identifying pathogens present in the emergency medical vehicles, the U of L team conducted experiments to identify different bacterial species present in each ambulance by investigating a region of DNA unique to each organism.

The results obtained from sequencing experiments allowed the team to develop novel antibodies which specifically recognize and bind to the surface of the identified bacterial organisms. These antibodies are then used in a test which generates a colour change in the event of bacterial identification. This test facilitates rapid and inexpensive detection of pathogens in emergency medical vehicles, and will enable targeted and purposeful sterilization of affected areas.

The novel antibodies being produced and used in this experiment are called single-domain antibodies (sdAb), which are much smaller than traditional antibodies, but with full antigen binding capabilities and increased stability. These antibodies can be synthesized without the use of animal hosts, allowing for lower production costs and less required infrastructure. The team is also constructing an online, searchable database of these single-domain antibodies which will streamline future research in this area, and may also allow the commercialization of sdAb production at the U of L.

The U of L iGEM team is composed of Keith Aiken, Taylor Sheahan, Graeme Glaister, Karin Otero, Suneet Kharey, Rhys Hakstol and Courtney McDermott. Dr. Andy Hudson and Dr. HJ Wieden serve as instructor and supervisor respectively.

UNews - Karin Otero

U of L iGEM team golden, now focussed on furthering project with Lethbridge Fire and EMS

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