Team:CIDEB-UANL Mexico/HP-Cideb-SyntheticTunnel/Español

Synthetic Tunnel

Descripción: Como miembro del equipo de CIDEB iGEM 2013, se puede observar que la difusión de información sobre la biología sintética iGEM en general, es muy importante para que la gente e incluye el trabajo de todos los participantes en este concurso. La mayoría de la gente no sabe lo que iGEM es y no saben ellos de las actividades que realizamos en el laboratorio con el fin de completar nuestro proyecto. Debido a esto fo esto, el equipo decidió hacer diferentes actividades para difundir información sobre nuestro trabajo y sobre iGEM en nuestra escuela secundaria, decidimos hacerlo más noticible no sólo por salir de estas actividades dentro de la escuela secundaria, nos decidimos a ir más lejos. Hicimos las actividades no sólo para los estudiantes en el interior, pero para la gente en general, por lo que toda una sociedad, reguardless de su edad, podemos acercarnos a los términos con los que trabajamos..

Uno de los principales objetivos de las prácticas humanas es la difusión de la biotecnología y para ello, se hizo uso del "túnel de la biología sintética", que tomamos prestado del equipo iGEM-UANL (formar la Facultad de Biología). Como estábamos buscando personas a las que podría estar expuesto, pensamos en los estudiantes del curso de inglés que van los sábados, como una buena oportunidad para volver a empezar. Nosotros comenzamos con los arreglos para hacer esto posible, ya que estaba pidiendo permiso al principio del curso y también, pidiendo a los maestros por una hora de clase para poder llevar al grupo a visitar y tener un recorrido completo y explicado del túnel. Por suerte lo aceptaron, y tan pronto como nos pusimos notificados, empezamos a preparar todo para tener el túnel listo, incluyendo las explicaciones determinadas.

Así que la idea básica de esta actividad es mostrar, explicar y hacer a los estudiantes entender tanto como puedan a partir de la información que se les presenta en el túnel de la biología sintética, la cual consiste en 10 módulos todo haciendo referencia a las diferentes áreas del proyecto que estamos trabajando, por ejemplo ADN, BioBricks y la seguridad en el interior de los laboratorios. En los cursos sabatinos, había 20 grupos de aproximadamente 30 personas cada una, todos con estudiantes de diferentes edades, a partir de 5 años de edad hasta los 18 años de edad. Al inicio nos dieron un programa con el tiempo y la fecha de cada grupo para el recorrido por el túnel. Dimos la gira a todos los grupos en 4 sábados y después de terminar cada día la exposición, el equipo recogía todas las piezas pequeñas en el túnel para evitar que algo se perdiese, y se almacenaban hasta el próximo sábado.

After all the expositions where done, we realized we had received positive feedback from the students that visited the tunnel. During the expositions, a big number of students were really paying attention and were really interested in the topics we talked about. They actively participated by asking questions of things they found themselves curious about and gave ideas they came up with at the time. They also mentioned that the explanations were very simple and easy to understand. This also includes the activity we did after every explanation, which tries to settle the ideas and make them easier for the students to remember.

At the end, the activity results in a bigger interest of the visitors in synthetic biology and in the iGEM contest. Students show a good response to the idea of joining to the next-years team. Even the teachers who accompanied the groups were very interested in the information given.

Activity: Each of modules had an activity which helps the students settle the ideas after the explanation given in each module. These activities made to give a more dynamic face to the explanations and avoid turning the tunnel into something boring, contrary to one of its objectives; they were all game-like activities which challenged the comprehension obtained from the explanations.
Objective: To reinforce the learning the students had in the modules with a fun and interactive activity, and have a more dynamic explanation.

Module 1. DNA: In the first activity, there was a table where it was drawn, but incomplete DNA with holes in the parts where nitrogenous bases should be. Students were given “nitrogenous bases” and they had to accommodate all the missing parts where they should go, based on the things they had just learned from the explanation.

Module 2. Genes: This activity was based on the four parts of a gene, a set of blocks was attached to a tube in groups of 4, and each block had one of the 4 parts of the genes in four faces. The objective was that the students should form a complete gene by arranging the blocks in order.

Module 3. Proteins: This section was based on the codons codes that produce the proteins, so for the activity we put a table with different codes of codons, and the students had to search for the amino acid that relates to the code, and finally form a complete protein.

Module 4. Genetic Engineering: The fourth activity was based on the design of different genes as part of genetic engineering. We used some pipe cleaners of different colors which served as genes. The students would have to combine them and put them in separate containers in a certain amount of time.

Module 5. Synthetic Biology: This activity was to follow synthetic biology rules by copying a gen from a predetermined sketch, thus practicing the rules and putting them into practice.

Module 6. BioBricks: After explaining what a BioBrick is and what it is used for, the students participated in the formation of a gene with BioBricks. We used Tetris-like parts to simulate BioBricks and with them the student had to form a bigger gene.

Module 7. Biological Machine: In this activity, after explaining the concept of energy in a biological machine, the students passed to the front to represent a machine that had to make its way through a maze trying to pass over the most possible factories, which means a source of energy, until they got to the end.

Module 8. Applications: In this activity, it was presented a case of how to use a biological machine, and the students were to classify them in a category: food, industry, medicine or environment.

Module 9. iGEM: Here, students had to simulate being our last-years iGEM project, by hitting with a toy hammer a strongman game, and see how “concentrated” they are.

Module 10. Ethic: In this last module, after learning about the importance of the security equipment in the lab, the students had to dress a friend with all the security equipment in less than 10 seconds, including security glasses, lab coat, gloves, mask, etc.