iGEM
The international Genetically Engineered Machine (iGEM) competition is an international competition for students in the field of synthetic biology . It has been organized by the iGEM Foundation since 2003, with the Massachusetts Institute of Technology (MIT) in Cambridge serving as the venue until 2014 .
Conditions of participation
Any undergraduate student is eligible. The basic idea of the iGEM competition is the formation of a team of several students who appoint at least two graduates ( doctoral student , post-doctoral student or professor ) as supervisors. In principle, a student and two supervisors can register as a group, or a university can register several teams. Participation is subject to a fee. There are fees for each team, each participating student and supervisor. The fees can vary every year and should therefore be checked on the competition website before registering. In the years 2011 to 2013 there were also participation fees for the Midterm Jamborée . It was expected that at least the supervisors of each team would take part in the midterm jamborée . These took place in Europe, Asia and the USA. Each team should give a presentation of their research field with the previous results. If possible, all members of the registered team should take part in the final presentation, but at least the supervisors with the student giving the presentation. The biological work should be recorded in the iGEM-Wiki, a kind of online laboratory book. Furthermore, all created biobricks - i.e. used DNA parts - are to be made available for the Registry of Standard Biological Parts at MIT. It is desirable to use existing biobricks. These are provided and sent by the iGEM organization team.
competition
The competition takes place primarily at the teams' universities. MIT does not provide any laboratory space or consumables. After registration and receipt of the biobricks, the teams worked at their universities for the summer. The final presentation of the results and the awarding of the medals will take place in the fall at MIT Boston. In 2010, 126 international teams were registered. In the years 2011 to 2013 there were continental qualifications, from which the teams that traveled to the finals were determined.
Prices
There are usually bronze, silver and gold medals to be won in over 20 categories. The competition does not award material or cash prizes. For each type of medal, guidelines must be met in order to be able to participate in the medal awards. There are also a number of special prizes, such as the Safety Commendation, which has existed since 2010, which honors projects that strive to improve biosafety in synthetic biology.
In addition to the medals, an overall winner is determined. The jury consists of members of the MIT scientific community.
Overview of past competition results for German teams
| year | Teams | medal | Overall ranking results (bold), special prizes, without nominations | Results |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2004 | No teams from Germany took part. | |||
| 2005 | ||||
| 2006 | ||||
| 2007 | Freiburg | gold | - |
|
| 2008 |
Freiburg |
Gold |
2nd place |
|
| 2009 |
Dresden |
Silver |
- |
|
| 2010 |
Bielefeld |
Gold |
- |
|
| 2011 |
Bielefeld |
Gold |
Best 16 projects |
|
| 2012 |
Bielefeld |
Gold |
Best 16 projects |
|
| 2013 |
Bonn |
Bronze |
- |
|
| 2014 |
Aachen |
Gold |
Best Measurement Project, Safety Commendation, Best Supporting Software |
|
| 2015 |
Aachen |
Gold |
Best Manufacturing Project, |
|
| 2016 |
Aachen |
Gold |
- |
|
| 2017 |
Aachen |
Gold |
- |
|
| 2018 |
Aachen |
Gold |
- |
|
| 2019 |
Aachen |
Gold |
- |
|
Web links
Footnotes
- ↑ et al. Guan: Biosafety Considerations of Synthetic Biology in the International Genetically Engineered Machine (iGEM) Competition . Retrieved February 15, 2017.