- N
- J
- K
Hello!
We are students from the Liberal Arts and Science Academy in Austin, TX, and in the fall of 2017, we will be a high school team participating in the internationally renowned synthetic biology competition, iGEM. At iGEM, every team researches, creates, and presents their own projects related to the field of synthetic biology. Synthetic biology is a recent area of science that incorporates molecular biology, biotechnology and genetic engineering (as well as many more elements) to aid in solving today's problems. As a result of recent advances in our understanding of the genomes of various organisms and DNA synthesis technology, living things can now be “programmed” using DNA.
We have the fortune of being graciously hosted by Dr. Ellington at the Ellington Lab at UT where we have access to the equipment to conduct our research. We learn about cutting-edge biotechnology through hands-on experience at the Ellington Lab after school and over the summer.
Our team is currently working on creating a bacterium that will assist people with Parkinson's disease. Parkinson's disease is onsetted by a lack of dopamine in regions of the brain. Dopamine cannot be administered to patients like a pill since the chemical cannot pass from the blood to the brain. Dopamine's precursor, however, L-DOPA, can. Our bacterium is designed to synthesize L-DOPA, specifically in the stomach, so that the L-DOPA can then be transported via blood to the brain where it will be converted to dopamine. We believe that in our project we can create a bacterium that will help our loved ones who are afflicted with Parkinson's.
However, while we are a group with many ideas, we don't have all the resources necessary to fund such a large trip to iGEM. Since we are a public high school team we do not receive funding from our school, therefore we are looking for corporate sponsors and other donations to raise over $4,500 to cover our attendance fees by the end of August. We are desperately trying to raise this money as soon as possible, and any donation helps us get there.
We are a group of students who want to do something to make the world a better place, and while our research takes us halfway there, we need your help in getting us even further.
We would really appreciate any contribution. Contributions can consist of a variety of things even spreading the word about our team to other organizations will help us achieve our goal!
Thank you,
The LASA iGEM and Synthetic Biology Club
We are students from the Liberal Arts and Science Academy in Austin, TX, and in the fall of 2017, we will be a high school team participating in the internationally renowned synthetic biology competition, iGEM. At iGEM, every team researches, creates, and presents their own projects related to the field of synthetic biology. Synthetic biology is a recent area of science that incorporates molecular biology, biotechnology and genetic engineering (as well as many more elements) to aid in solving today's problems. As a result of recent advances in our understanding of the genomes of various organisms and DNA synthesis technology, living things can now be “programmed” using DNA.
We have the fortune of being graciously hosted by Dr. Ellington at the Ellington Lab at UT where we have access to the equipment to conduct our research. We learn about cutting-edge biotechnology through hands-on experience at the Ellington Lab after school and over the summer.
Our team is currently working on creating a bacterium that will assist people with Parkinson's disease. Parkinson's disease is onsetted by a lack of dopamine in regions of the brain. Dopamine cannot be administered to patients like a pill since the chemical cannot pass from the blood to the brain. Dopamine's precursor, however, L-DOPA, can. Our bacterium is designed to synthesize L-DOPA, specifically in the stomach, so that the L-DOPA can then be transported via blood to the brain where it will be converted to dopamine. We believe that in our project we can create a bacterium that will help our loved ones who are afflicted with Parkinson's.
However, while we are a group with many ideas, we don't have all the resources necessary to fund such a large trip to iGEM. Since we are a public high school team we do not receive funding from our school, therefore we are looking for corporate sponsors and other donations to raise over $4,500 to cover our attendance fees by the end of August. We are desperately trying to raise this money as soon as possible, and any donation helps us get there.
We are a group of students who want to do something to make the world a better place, and while our research takes us halfway there, we need your help in getting us even further.
We would really appreciate any contribution. Contributions can consist of a variety of things even spreading the word about our team to other organizations will help us achieve our goal!
Thank you,
The LASA iGEM and Synthetic Biology Club