University of Groningen: Team iGEM Groningen 2022 wins gold medal

The Groningen iGEM 2022 team has won a gold medal with their Nanobuddy project during the annual iGEM (international Genetically Engineering Machine) competition. The medal was presented during the final award ceremony. Winning a gold medal means that the team has performed exceptionally with their project. The annual jamboree took place in Paris and lasted three days. In addition to winning a gold medal, the team was also among the nominees for the ‘safety and security award’.

To win a gold medal, as a team you have to convince the jury that you meet all medal criteria. For example, you must be able to demonstrate that your conceived technical system works, that you have investigated and addressed problems in your design and that you have thought about how your project adds value to the world. For the ‘safety and security award’, teams are challenged to think about how the use of synthetic biology can be safer and more secure and to apply this in their projects.

Nanobuddy project
Over the last few years, bird flu has become endemic in large parts of Europe. If bird flu is discovered on a farm, all birds on that farm must be killed. The economic costs are high and vaccination is now considered a possible solution. The iGEM Groningen 2022 team has come up with a novel way of protecting birds: by genetically engineering a bacterium that is naturally present in the lungs of poultry.

iGEM competition
The iGEM competition took place in Paris from October 26 till 28. In total, there were more than 350 participating teams from all over the world. iGEM is the international Genetically Engineering Machine competition. iGEM provides multidisciplinary teams of students the opportunity to find solutions for global problems using synthetic biology.