Team:KULeuven/9 July 2009

=Progress=

Regulation bacteria
The focus was on finding the magical molecule 'X'. Ideas that gathered the most attention:
 * 1) Ideas concerning aquaria (nutrients for fish):
 * 2) *Essential amino acids (Methionine/Leucine/etc..)
 * 3) *Vitamines (Vitamine K/Thiamin/Choline)
 * 4) Odour bacteria (Manage the concentration of odour that is synthesized and transported)
 * 5) *Vanilla odour
 * 6) *biobricks for odour:
 * 7) **Odor bricks
 * 8) *** (Banana odour generator)
 * 9) *** (Wintergreen odour generator)
 * 10) *** (Feruloyl-CoA hydratase for vanillin biosynthesis protein generator) <-- no experience/DNA available (yet)
 * 11) *** (Synthetic periplasmic binding protein that docks a vanillin molecule) Receptor molecule
 * 12) **Experience from iGEM 2006 MIT group wintergreen and banana odor generator
 * 13) **Experience from Igem 2006 valencia group Vanillin detector system

Problem: Vanillin receptor and light receptor use the same ompr-p molecule. So, either find a different receptor for vanillin/other receptor or use a different regulator system, such as chemical receptors or others...

The system for measuring the difference between desired value (light) and the vanillin concentration would be competitive binding of repressor and activator. However, if both systems utilize the same receptor protein, no competitive binding of repressor and activator occurs. Therefore a different receptor is required. In that way the light receptor (desired value) can express A (activator) and the odour receptor can express B (inhibitor).

The blue lagoon
Today was about finding answers to the questions posed yesterday.

We searched for information about the optimal growth temperature for E. coli and temperature profiles for ponds in summer. We found that E. coli can grow in temperatures as low as 7,5 °C, while ponds should be well above 18°C. So, temperature should not be a problem.

We also continued working on the refinement of the ideas for our Blue Lagoon. After a short talk with Inge, we started looking for suitable cyanobacteria to replace E. coli, since it would solve a lot of the problems we were still facing with E. coli.

Our preferred cyanobacterium will be a strain from P. marinus, it will either by the SS120 strain or the MIT9313 (?) strain. Both strains have desirable properties, but we will have to make adjustments to the biobricks if we want to use these.

Tomorrow will be about further searching for information about P. marinus and it's possible use.

= Drylab =

Wiki

 * Created main stylesheet
 * Included common header in all pages
 * Daynavigator code, included in default notebook template

= Remarks =

Quote of the day
Bart van Parys over muggepotjes:

"ik mag dat niet gebruiken van mijn mama. Ze heeft dat ooit afgepakt van mij"