Difference between revisions of "Team:Austin UTexas"

 
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<a href = "https://igem.org/Main_Page"> <IMG class = "iGemLogo" src="https://static.igem.org/mediawiki/2016/b/b2/T--Austin_UTexas--iGemLogo.png"> </a>
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<h2> Description </h2>
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<br><br><br>
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<p><h2>Here’s the story of a lovely iGEM team...</h2></p>
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...who cultured kombucha in the hot Texas summer to learn more about the drink’s microbial makeup. Kombucha, a drink made when a diverse community of yeast and bacteria ferments sweetened tea, has recently exploded in popularity, especially in our hometown of Austin, Texas. Despite the drink’s popularity, not much is known about the population of microbes responsible for giving sweet tea a vinegar-like tang. As students at The University of Texas, we were interested in finding out more about the drink that is rapidly becoming ingrained in our city’s culture. Along the way, we’ve explored ways to improve the drink with synthetic biology.</p>
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<p><h2>That’s the way we became the ‘Bucha Bunch!</h2></p>
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<br><br>
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<img src="https://static.igem.org/mediawiki/2016/6/6d/T--Austin_UTexas--Timeline.png">
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<br><br>
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<h2> What is Kombucha?</h2>
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<p> <br>Kombucha is a fermented tea that contains a symbiotic community which is characterized by the relationship between ethanol-producing yeast and bacteria. These different species of bacteria create bacterial cellulose and convert the ethanol produced from yeast, into acetic acid. Due to this unique microbiome, many claims have been made regarding the health benefits that come from drinking this beverage. However, none of these claims have been proven scientifically. Even so, these claims have contributed to the rising popularity of the beverage. The Kombucha Brewers International, a non-profit trade association, has reported a growth of 50% per year in the kombucha industry with no signs of slowing down in the near future.<sup>1</sup> We believe that our research can not only add to the field of synthetic biology, but also help grow the kombucha industry through the implementation of scientific rigor to the process of creating kombucha. Our goal is to create a designer beverage with added benefits that come from either the genetic modification of the microbiome present or through naturally altering the population of the microbiome present during the brewing of kombucha. The timeline above outlines the steps taken to achieve our goals.  Several of our goals evolved during the course of our project in direct response to our discussions with those in the kombucha industry. </p>
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<p><b>1. Isolate and identify different microbes in kombucha through various growth mediums and antibiotics, while using 16s sequencing to reveal the identities of the microorganisms.</b>
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So far, we have identified the yeasts <i>Lachancea fermentati</i> and <i>Schizosaccharomyces pombe</i> and the bacteria <i>Gluconobacter oxydans.</i></p>
  
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<p> Kombucha is a fermented tea that contains a symbiotic community which includes both bacterial and yeast cells. There are many claims about the potential health benefits that kombucha provides, but none of these assertions have been proven scientifically. Due to the growing popularity of kombucha, these microbes pose a valuable opportunity to use synthetic biology in order to create a designer beverage. During this research, we have isolated and identified various types of bacteria and fungi from store bought kombucha. We have also attempted to conjugate GFP into these microbes to prove that genetically engineering the bacterial cells is possible. By proving that we can genetically engineer the bacteria, we can design constructs such as a genetic device that makes Brazzein, a sweet-tasting protein, or even increase the rate at which acetic acid is produced in the tea. We are also attempting to recapitulate kombucha by adding specific bacterial and fungal strains to sweetened tea in order to learn what species of microbes are required for tea to turn into kombucha.</p>
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<p><b>2. Prove that genetic engineering is possible with the bacteria in kombucha by using conjugation to transfer a plasmid with a gene that produces GFP (Green Fluorescent Protein)</b>
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We are still attempting conjugation, however, there has yet to be a successful attempt in <i>Gluconobacter oxydans</i> or <i>Gluconacetobacter hansenii</i> ( a close relative of <i>Ga. xylinus</i>).</l></p>
  
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<p> Our team has been pursuing several different research avenues this summer.  We are working with a variety of organisms, including microbial communities, in an attempt to engineer a system that may be useful to the world in some way. Currently, we are discovering and attempting to engineer the organisms that make up the SCOBY (symbiotic community of bacteria and yeast) in Kombucha tea. Though this may seem to cover a very broad range, UT’s iGEM team is united under one front: we aim to improve something in the world through genetic engineering </p>
 
  
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<p> Thus far, each sub-project has accomplished something different, but we are all ultimately experiencing successes and failures. One of our sub-teams is developing a process by which gellan gum (a substitute for agar) can be made at home for novice biochemists, but there have been several issues with the process. Additionally, through weeks of trial and error, many teams have become very familiar with non-model organisms that the lab has never before worked with. Furthermore, we are very proud of a partnership that we are developing in the Kombucha industry, as this will be an invaluable resource as we proceed in this area. </p>
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<p><b>3. Confirm successful conjugation by utilizing 16s sequencing to reveal the identities of the potential transconjugants.</b>
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We have only sequenced <i> E. coli</i>, which means conjugation has not been successful.</p>
  
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<p> In the coming weeks, many of our projects will need to adjust and improve our Golden Gate Assembly system because the whole lab has been having problems in that respect. Furthermore, many projects will need to create a process to transform their organisms as these organisms have either not been used in our lab previously or are new isolates from the environment. A few of our sub-teams have shown successful conjugation, though. Finally, it is clear that we will need to consolidate our sub-projects to bring to the iGEM Jamboree. While each of our aims is valuable and interesting, not all will be ready to present and  only some will yield results of a quality that we are proud of. </p>
 
  
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<p> In the coming weeks, many of our projects will need to adjust and improve our Golden Gate Assembly system because the whole lab has been having problems in that respect. Furthermore, many projects will need to create a process to transform their organisms as these organisms have either not been used in our lab previously or are new isolates from the environment. A few of our sub-teams have shown successful conjugation, though. Finally, it is clear that we will need to consolidate our sub-projects to bring to the iGEM Jamboree. While each of our aims is valuable and interesting, not all will be ready to present and  only some will yield results of a quality that we are proud of. </p>
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<p><b>4. Design a construct(s) in bacteria endogenous to kombucha that adds a beneficial aspect to the drink.</b>
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<br>
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We are currently in the process of designing a construct that produces Brazzein, a sweet tasting protein that can serve as an artificial sweetener. Another construct would include a part that increases the efficiency at which <i> G. oxydans </i> converts ethanol into acetic acid in order to decrease the ABV of the beverage.</p>
  
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<p><b>5. Recapitulate create kombucha from scratch by adding specific strains of bacteria and yeast, including the transconjugants that contain our construct(s).</b>
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We have successfully recapitulated kombucha with a mixture of our strains that has been isolated from store. However, due to the fact that there has not been a successful conjugation, there has not been a recapitulation with a transconjugant.</p>
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====References====
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#[https://kombuchabrewers.org/about-us/history-of-kombucha-brewing/ Kombucha Brewers International]
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{{Team:Austin_UTexas/Footer}}

Latest revision as of 15:05, 19 October 2016




Here’s the story of a lovely iGEM team...

...who cultured kombucha in the hot Texas summer to learn more about the drink’s microbial makeup. Kombucha, a drink made when a diverse community of yeast and bacteria ferments sweetened tea, has recently exploded in popularity, especially in our hometown of Austin, Texas. Despite the drink’s popularity, not much is known about the population of microbes responsible for giving sweet tea a vinegar-like tang. As students at The University of Texas, we were interested in finding out more about the drink that is rapidly becoming ingrained in our city’s culture. Along the way, we’ve explored ways to improve the drink with synthetic biology.

That’s the way we became the ‘Bucha Bunch!





What is Kombucha?


Kombucha is a fermented tea that contains a symbiotic community which is characterized by the relationship between ethanol-producing yeast and bacteria. These different species of bacteria create bacterial cellulose and convert the ethanol produced from yeast, into acetic acid. Due to this unique microbiome, many claims have been made regarding the health benefits that come from drinking this beverage. However, none of these claims have been proven scientifically. Even so, these claims have contributed to the rising popularity of the beverage. The Kombucha Brewers International, a non-profit trade association, has reported a growth of 50% per year in the kombucha industry with no signs of slowing down in the near future.1 We believe that our research can not only add to the field of synthetic biology, but also help grow the kombucha industry through the implementation of scientific rigor to the process of creating kombucha. Our goal is to create a designer beverage with added benefits that come from either the genetic modification of the microbiome present or through naturally altering the population of the microbiome present during the brewing of kombucha. The timeline above outlines the steps taken to achieve our goals. Several of our goals evolved during the course of our project in direct response to our discussions with those in the kombucha industry.

References

  1. Kombucha Brewers International