Community involvement is a high priority for the Missouri Miners iGEM Team. Every year the team does several community outreach events, including hosting educational events, ethical discussions, and a class on Missouri S&T's campus. The following sections detail the activities that the team organized and participated in over the past year, as well as advances the team has made as a student organization and design team at Missouri S&T.

Exploring Synthetic Biology Informational Event

Similar to the previous year, our team held an educational event for the campus community entitled “Exploring Synthetic Biology.” This event was designed primarily to educate students about synthetic biology and genetic engineering as a whole, as well as to provide information about the goals of the iGEM foundation and Missouri S&T's iGEM team in particular. Although this event was similar to one held during the spring semester of 2011, many improvements were made to the overall structure to incorporate more of a hands-on learning atmosphere. This was accomplished through a plasmid modeling activity found on the Community Bricks section of the iGEM website (courtesy of iGEM British Columbia 2011), as well as a “quick and dirty” DNA extraction activity provided by one of the team's advisors and a Jeopardy activity containing information specific to the presentations from the afternoon. Surveys were distributed both before and after the event to gain valuable feedback from participants; data was utilized as part of two team members’ OURE (Opportunities for Undergraduate Research Experience) project. Prizes were given to attendees periodically throughout the program to encourage participation and reward the winners of the Jeopardy game. The event was held on a Saturday afternoon (March 3, 2011) from 1 to 4 pm. There were 20 Missouri S&T students in attendance, not including the iGEM team members who helped during the presentations and activities. The first presentation of the afternoon served as an introduction to the field of synthetic biology and its applications in the real world. Discussions were focused on considering problems in the world that can be addressed through synthetic biological approaches. After the broad discussion of the importance of the field, presenters described the basic concepts of molecular biology that iGEM teams utilize to modify organisms to carry out designated functions.

A plasmid modeling activity followed the first presentation of the afternoon. This activity was found on the Community Bricks website and was originally designed by the 2011 iGEM team from British Columbia. Segments of multi-colored lengths of pipe cleaners (“genes”) were given to groups of three to five attendees, along with information sheets that described what the pieces represented and three different scenarios that can be addressed using synthetic biology. An iGEM team member was assigned to each group to lead them through the activities, letting them know of the rules for each round and what was to be accomplished. Students were given prizes for successfully completing the activity and presenting their “plasmid” to the audience.

The second presentation was an in-depth talk about the process by which iGEM teams typically carry-out lab projects. From isolation to characterization, topics were covered in a logical progression to give the audience a better grasp on what iGEM does, and how teams do what they do. This section was focused on giving students from a variety of backgrounds (mostly engineering students) a clearer understanding of molecular genetics techniques and their importance to synthetic biology.

A simple DNA extraction activity followed the second presentation portion of the event. This activity was supplied and instructed by one of the team’s advisors, Dr. Dave Westenberg. Every participant was given a plastic tube filled with one gram of wheat germ. Through a series of reactions with simple reagents, every student was taken through a stripped-down protocol for what iGEM teams use to extract DNA from cells. The steps were “quick and dirty” using warm water, soap, and then alcohol to perform the required reactions. Wood swabs were used to transfer the DNA (mixed with some carbohydrates and proteins) “glop” from the reaction tube into a clean Eppendorf tube, which students were encouraged to keep as souvenirs.

The last presentation included information about applications of genetic engineering in industry and agriculture around the world. This section was to provide concrete examples of current uses of synthetic biology that many of us encounter in our everyday lives, such as the production of recombinant bovine growth hormone (rGBH), aspartame and various other food additives, and nutritionally enhanced or pest-tolerant food crops. In discussing these examples, broad questions regarding ethics were interspersed with a discussion of the many differences between the amounts of structural complexity in microorganisms versus macroorganisms. Ethical concerns are often tied in with the goals of industry and legislature, and possible dilemmas were discussed with the group’s participation. The presentation was concluded with significant emphasis on the fact that while genetic engineering can get messy on such a large scale, iGEM teams typically work with systems that demonstrate a proof of concept without carrying-out the full scope of the proposed project.

Finally, a Jeopardy game was used to wrap-up the event. Questions were incorporated into the game based off of the information that was covered in the three presentations and reinforced during the activities. Groups of three to five participants were paired with an iGEM team member, though the team member was not allowed to directly tell their groups the answers. The team members served as a reference of whether or not the group members were on the right track, which was incredibly valuable to the sense of involvement experienced by team members that were not part of the presentations. The winning group was given first choice of prizes that were available to all participants, including: color-changing cups with the team’s logo, gift cards to local businesses, and merchandise from the university bookstore.

Our team was hugely successful in preparing all of the different activities and presentations for this event. Advertising for the event was achieved through various means, including: campus-wide and department-specific listserv notifications, flyers in all academic buildings and residence halls, campus radio ads, and chalk on the sidewalks all over campus. Feedback from attendees was extremely positive. Twenty people attended the event, which was a sufficient amount for the event to be engaging and successful, although the team had hoped for attendance of at least thirty individuals. In the future, attendance could be improved by holding such an event during a more convenient time than a weekend. It is also believed that as the team increases awareness of synthetic biology in the community, attendance at educational events is likely to increase as well. The team is excited to build on the success of this event even more in the coming years.

Speak UP Speak OUT

Speak UP Speak OUT is a series of events hosted by Leadership and Cultural Programs at Missouri S&T. These moderated discussions are held periodically throughout the year on a variety of controversial topics. In spring 2011, our team suggested synthetic biology as a topic for discussion. Although our team was not directly involved in the planning of this event, the discussion was successful in engaging students from a variety of backgrounds in many topics associated with synthetic biology. This fall, our team will be working more closely with Leadership and Cultural Programs to plan out the topics for discussion beforehand. Previous successful programs involved students who did not know anything about synthetic biology upon arrival, which may or may not be the case in the future. It would be ideal to assess the audience’s perceptions of the field during the event in order to address possible misconceptions held by students who are unfamiliar with both the risks and benefits of genetically engineering living organisms. This event will function as both an educational opportunity for attendees and as a way to spread awareness of our iGEM team on campus and the organization as a whole.

Other Educational Events

Visiting student groups, Engineering Week at the Science Center etc.

Bio 375 - Biological Design and Innovation

Our iGEM team (in conjunction with one of our advisors, Dr. Dave Westenberg) created a course through the university called Biological Design and Innovation I to teach students about synthetic biology research. This course is open every spring semester to any student interested in upper level biology coursework, not exclusively iGEM team members. The purpose of this course is to teach students how to design a synthetic biology research proposal from conceptualization to forming a concrete research plan. This serves two main purposes for the team: to benefit team members by formally teaching them how to develop a research proposal and to develop research proposals from which the team can select a project each year. The course was offered for the first time in spring of 2011, which allowed for the development and selection of our previous project, the microbial glucose sensor. An additional project was developed, which was later funded by the OURE Fellows program to conduct research on the effect of education on synthetic biology. During the 2012 spring semester, four proposals were developed involving: condensation of the nitrogen cycle, microbial cellulose, malaria-fighting bacteria, and mycolic acid degradation to fight Tuberculosis. The latter of the four listed proposals was ultimately selected as our team’s project for the year. Over summer during the lab work phase of the project, the concept was trimmed down to focus primarily on the extracellular scaffolding aspect.

Undergraduate Research Conference

Participation at Missouri S&T’s Undergraduate Research Conference (URC) accompanies the team’s normal activities and research. Team members often get OURE or OURE Fellows funding to participate in research for iGEM projects, and then present these projects at the URC. Team members can develop project proposals in the spring semester either individually or through Bio 375, which are often entered into the Project Proposal section of the conference. One such project proposal developed in this class was selected for an OURE Fellowship involving the effect of education on synthetic biology. The report for this project can be found on the Public Opinion Research section of this Wiki. Our team prides itself on fostering the necessary skills that allow for members to win multiple awards in the conference; one of the goals of our team is to positively affect members by developing these skills, and winning these awards is the realization of that goal.

Organization

Becoming a RSO

In Fall 2010, our iGEM team became a recognized student organization (RSO) at Missouri S&T. This was a critical step for our team because we do not have any consistent or stable funding sources outside of our university. Now our team has access to funding from Student Council under a Professional Projects fund. This has allowed us to start purchasing our own equipment and secure our own lab space. This has been a huge jump for our previously struggling team. In addition to funding, being a RSO allows our team access to additional exposure and the ability to host legitimate functions at the university, such as our Synthetic Biology Informational in spring 2011 and the Exploring Synthetic Biology Event this past spring.

Student Design and Experiential Learning Center

Once our team obtained RSO status, we applied to be a part of the Student Design and Experiential Learning Center (SDELC). This is an organization that oversees and provides opportunities and resources to student design teams on campus. Missouri S&T has a highly-valued tradition of outstanding student design teams across multiple engineering disciplines, including Solar Car, Concrete Canoe, Solar House, Human-Powered Vehicle, Miner Baja SAE, Advanced Aero Vehicle Group, Formula SAE Racing Team, Robotics, and Steel Bridge. We intend to increase the diversity of student design teams on campus because we are a diverse organization that brings a unique aspect of design to the university.

Being a part of the SDELC increases the exposure of our team and increases awareness of iGEM and synthetic biology. The SDELC also provides us with many additional resources, such as staffing support and funding opportunities. We became an official SDELC design team January 2012.

Most Improved Organization Award

In Spring 2011, our iGEM team won the Outstanding Student Leaders' Most Improved Organization award. This honor was presented to us by Missouri S&T's Corporate Development Council and Student Council. Our iGEM team was nominated based on the reasons presented below.

In the past iGEM's success had been limited by small membership, lack of funding, poor leadership, and lack of lab training that made it difficult for new members to get involved. However, with the hard work of a few students and the executive board elected in December 2010, iGEM began to flourish. Missouri S&T iGEM had gained status as a recognized student organization and applied to be a student design team (which was approved January 2012). We gained a lab space in Schrenk Hall. Membership increased by about 30% in 2011 alone, and non-officer members had become much more active, whereas before only a couple of officers did most of the work. iGEM had also raised about $1000 from fundraising efforts the spring semester alone, received corporate sponsorship, been approved for funding from S&T's Student Council, and been approved to receive funding from the professional projects fund in the future. The executive board had formed a spring class to teach new iGEM members lab techniques and develop quality research project proposals that were later presented at the 7th Annual Undergraduate Research Conference. Some iGEM members had also applied to do research through the Opportunities for Undergraduate Research Experience Fellows program about public opinion of synthetic biology and how education can affect that opinion. Missouri S&T iGEM had also recruited members studying majors other than biology and chemical engineering. We had scheduled a synthetic biology informational for April 13, set up an ethical discussion about synthetic biology through Speak UP Speak OUT, and spoken to the Rolla High School's Science Olympiad team about synthetic biology.

Recruitment

Description of recruitment efforts... (PRO Days, Informational/Recruitment Meeting, In-Class Informationals)