Team:The Agency Escondido/project

Project Description

Our project seeks to create two identical triads of transparent bacteria strains with complementary hydrophobic inducer production to emulate the game of "rock, paper, scissors" (Hydrophobic proteins can move through plasma membranes). Each triad will correspond to a group: group A and group B. Each type of bacteria will produce a specific protein that will act as an inducer to one and only one other bacteria strain(rock strain, paper strain, and scissors strain). Each triad will have different reporter genes designating its champion color. When two bacteria strains are combined in an agar plate, each protein secreted by the victorious strain, when acting as an inducer, changes the color of the cells on the plate identifying the champion. We will learn of the inducers' solubility in water through this game. Only hydrophobic inducers can permeate the cell and induce an operon in a foreign cell. We developed our paper protocol, rock protocol, and scissors protocol before we began our project.

At the time of writing we are about 75% done with our project. We still need to complete the final assembly of the "scissors" strain and need to complete the second and third assembly of the "rock" and "paper" strains. We anticipate completion by the end of the summer.