iGEM Team Giant Jamboree

Life Science cadets prepared for their upcoming presentation at the International Genetically Modified Machines (iGEM) Giant Jamboree in Boston, MA with Manhattan College Riverdale students. The iGEM Competition is the premiere student team competition in Synthetic Biology where teams have a chance to medal in Bronze, Silver, or Gold in several categories. To medal for Silver, the USMA-West Point team was required to collaborate with an outside iGEM team, and this year collaborated with Manhattan College Riverdale by practicing their presentation and sharing transformed biological material. The West Point team is composed of nine current and previous cadets in Life Science and Mathematics who conducted work during AY17-2, over the summer at Naval Research Laboratory (NRL), and during AY18-1. Drs. Mitropoulos, Wickiser, Cave, and Woronowicz advise the team. For over 10 years, iGEM has been encouraging students to work together to solve real-world challenges by building genetically engineered biological systems with standard, interchangeable parts. For more information, see www.igem.org or http://2017.igem.org/Team:USMA-West_Point.