Our Project

Municipal and industrial wastewaters contain a variety of pollutants, such as estrogens and xeno-estrogens, which can cause severe disorders in humans and animals. Effects of exposure may range from reduced fertility and feminization of males in animals to increased risks of cancer and osteoporosis in humans. Sewage and wastewater treatment plants can only provide a partial treatment for such pollutants.

Bielefeld’s 2012 iGEM Team aims to develop a filter system using immobilized laccases to reduce the levels of estrogens and other pollutants in wastewater. Moreover, this system should be extended to further possibilities for industrial use, such as in paper and textile industries, or even for bioremediation of contaminated soil. By using synthetic biology methods, different laccases could be standardized and cheaply tested and produced.