The IGEM (International Genetically Engineered Machine Competition) is a global scientific and technological competition held in synthetic biology. In the competition in 2021, the IGEM team from Duke Kunshan University stood out among nearly 400 participating teams from all around the world, and finally won the silver medal. Led by Chen Jiani, the DKU IGEM team proposed an environmental friendly solution towards the environmental threat created by the overpopulation of the cyanobacteria
Team Introduction
This interdisciplinary research team includes undergraduate students from molecular biology, data science and material science. Jiani is from Class 2023. Majoring in molecular biology, she has always been interested in bioengineering. Also, as the founder of the DKU IGEM team and in response to an opportunity provided by Dachuang Project, Jiani set up a research team composed of 13 students, with nine being responsible for biological experiments and four taking charge of IT operations.
Co-sponsored by DKU Innovation and Entrepreneurship (InE) Office, the Office of the Undergraduate School, the Division of Natural and Applied Sciences, the Office of Student Affairs, and Nikon Corporation, the IGEM team proposed using peptide synthesis by the e-coli to kill the cyanobacteria to control and improve the water pollution in the Taihu Lake. Modelling and actual measurements were included in the research process, which will be presented on the website in its entirety.
Project’s Original Motivation
Talking about the original motivation of participating in the Dachuang Project, Jiani said that she once participated in the competition with the IGEM team of Tsinghua University in high school. After coming to DKU, she wanted to participate again, but she found that there was no such a team on the campus. So she came up with the idea of creating a team of her own. However, at the beginning of the program, the school wouldn’t give the freshman a lot of money, and many professors did not think she and her team members could successfully form and maintain the team. “Just when we were about to give up, our professor talked about the project with Prof. Liqi Ren from the Innovation and Entrepreneurship Center. Prof. Liqi Ren thought it was a good idea and asked us to join Dachuang.” It was this precious acknowledgement that provided the IGEM team fertile ground for growth and development and, ultimately, opportunities for success.
Recalling the initial hardships of building the team, Jiani said:
“It can be said that this project was saved by Dachuang. At the beginning, I didn’t get the support of the school and even thought about giving up. Fortunately, Dachuang gave us support to make this competition possible.”
Jiani also mentioned that since this project was under the direction of natural science and was designed to participate in the competition, Dachuang’s main support for this project was in terms of funding, and the team’s research, modeling, and field trips required a lot of money. Though Dachuang is not the sole provider of financial support to the IGEM, it stands out as the most generous.
Growth From Dachuang
Although many people argue that starting a business during school will affect learning, the DKU InE Office has understood and taken the notion of student innovation and entrepreneurship to great heights. Many other students who have participated in the Dachuang project also said that having an experience in innovation and entrepreneurship during their university years have helped them a lot to improve their professional skills and learn a lot of soft skills in communicating with others.
When the IGEM team was asked about the influence of the Dachuang project on her life, Jiani replied，
“The project and the whole process has influenced me a lot mainly in two ways. The first is about communication and team leadership. I learned how to communicate effectively, overcome difficulties, and sell our solutions to the outside world. Second, we have done a lot of professional research, consulted many professors, and learned modeling from scratch. Besides, this competition experience is also very helpful when I apply to graduate school.”
Finally, when asked “what attracts you most about Dachuang”, Jiani answered without hesitation, “as long as you have creative ideas, as long as you are willing to put your ideas into practice, Dachuang is always there to help you with guidance and financial assistance.”
Summary
As Jiani said, the Dachuang Program cherishes every inspiration and encourages every idea from every student. If your mind is full of imaginative ideas every day, you are welcome to join the Dachuang Program. We will help you turn every interesting idea into reality, and make all kinds of novel ideas come out!
