Team:NTU-Singapore/Project

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pLaqUe Out!

Contents


The NTU iGEM '09 Team has identified atherosclerosis as the problem we would like to tackle.

Atherosclerosis is one of the major diseases affecting the world. In our research, we found the numbers were staggering, and growing. We also found that early diagnosis was rare, medications were not ideal and surgeries were a commonly used last resort.

We asked ourselves what if we could design a biological system to identify plaque sites and reduce the plaque volume in vivo?



Atherosclerosis in physiology

Here's an informative video describing the nature of atherosclerotic buildup, and deadly consequences.


As you can see, LDL-cholesterol buildup, and subsequent foam cell formation is the root cause of plaque buildup.

The condition becomes increasingly irreversible as calcification sets in. The problem then is that plaque buildup is not identified early enough for medication to actually reverse the condition, rather than alleviating the symptoms.


Our solution is to target the early stages of plaque build-up. Our system needs to sense potential atherosclerotic sites, and immediately breakdown components of buildup, as well as help in the early diagnosis.


Checklist of deliverables

Title is self-explanatory


References/Literature


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