Frank Sargent Division of Molecular Microbiology College of Life Sciences
Americas
Europe
Asia
Regional Finals - October World Championship Jamboree - November
Conceive a Novel Project Raise Funds & Build a Team Model, Predict & Test Hypotheses Design, Conduct & Interpret Experiments Consider Safety & Ethics Collaborate with other Scientists Deposit Data in Public Repositories Engage the Public / ‘Human Practices’ Present Posters & Seminars at Conferences Win Prizes and/or Take Criticism All in 10 weeks
Computing
Maths Biology Physics
Life Sciences
Maths
advertise widely in Semester 1, collect applications interview students in January value science communication skills as highly as academic prowess
Our problem: Algal Blooms Explosion
in the growth of blue-green algae (cyanobacteria)
Production of toxins Hazardous to humans, pets and livestock. Local problem E.g. Reservoirs, lakes/lochs Global
problem
Clatto reservoir, Dundee
Liver toxin: Microcystin
PP1 & Microcystin Microcystin
Binds
covalently to Protein Phosphatase 1
Blocks PP1
the active site
is an essential regulatory protein
Goldberg et al (1995) Nature 376, 745-753. PDB code: 1FJM
Our idea: a biological ‘ToxiMop’ PP1
PP1
PP1
PP1 PP1
PP1
PP1
PP1 (sp)
PP1
PP1 PP1 PP1
PP1
PP1
PP1
PP1
PP1 PP1
PP1
PP1
PP1
Extracellular space
Periplasm
Cytoplasm
ToxiMop ELISA No Cells
X
Vector only
CytoplasmicPP1
ToxiMop Cells
0.26 nM Microcystin
Biological Detector Light
Temperature
Humidity
pH
Dissolved O2
Webcam
The Future of ToxiMop ď‚ž Moptopus
Mk. II
Raw data from the buoyancy assay
Dundee: European Champions
60 teams including Edinburgh, Imperial, UCL, Leeds, Kent, Newcastle, Manchester, Leicester, Westminster, Exeter, East Anglia, York
Dundee: World Champions
71 teams including Harvard, MIT, Peking, Yale, Cornell, Stanford-Brown, Tokyo Tech, Sydney.
The future of interdisciplinarity?
Frank Sargent Division of Molecular Microbiology College of Life Sciences