iGEM Competition 2024: Students at Leibniz University Hannover receive gold medal for development that could help prevent antibiotic resistance According to the World Health Organization (WHO), antibiotic resistance could cause ten million deaths a year by 2050. A key driver of this resistance is the contamination of water with antibiotics and heavy metals; both promote the emergence of multi-resistant bacteria. A team of students at Leibniz University Hannover (LUH) has now developed a fluorescent biosensor at NIFE that efficiently detects antibiotic and heavy metal contamination in water. The biosensor could help to detect even minor contamination at an early stage. The LUH team's achievement was awarded a gold medal at the international iGEM 2024 competition. LUH students from the Biology, Physics, Molecular Microbiology and Plant Biotechnology degree programs worked together for a year on the "Hydro Guardians" project, which aims to tackle the urgent problem of antimicrobial resistance. The cellular biosensor developed combines elements from prokaryotic (without cell nucleus) and eukaryotic cells (with cell nucleus) and uses specific biological mechanisms for detection: integration of the so-called PASTA domain (a penicillin-binding protein) enables the detection of a specific group of antibiotics, while the transcription factor MTF-1 (Metal-responsive Transcription Factor-1) recognizes heavy metals such as cadmium, zinc and copper. When antibiotics bind, the PASTA domain activates a signaling cascade that leads to a fluorescent signal, which in turn indicates the presence of these pollutants. For heavy metals, the reaction is triggered by the activation of metal homeostasis genes, which also generates fluorescence and enables reliable measurement. By integrating various spectroscopic measurements and a comprehensive model that simulates the interactions between antibiotics, heavy metals and multi-resistant bacteria in water bodies, the team is contributing to the understanding of water pollution. The mathematical model makes it possible to adjust parameters such as the concentration of pollutants and environmental factors, allowing long-term effects of water pollution to be analyzed. However, the project did not only take place within the laboratory: The team from Hanover interviewed experts from the fields of wastewater treatment, environmental microbiology and healthcare. This collaboration supported the development of a practical and application-oriented design. The students also wrote a book for children to raise awareness of the problem of antibiotic resistance at an early age. The team members have now been awarded the iGEM Gold Medal for their work. The iGEM competition is a global event in the field of synthetic biology that enables students to develop innovative solutions to social challenges. The acronym iGEM stands for International Genetically Engineered Machine. Every year, more than 450 teams from all over the world come together in Paris to present novel projects that offer far-reaching solutions to challenges in the fields of health, the environment and technology. This extensive research and development work by the LUH team was recognized by the jury with a gold medal for excellence in synthetic biology. In addition, the team was nominated for the "Best New Basic Part Award" for the development of a novel antibiotic-sensitive promoter. The performance of team member Davin Höllmann, who achieved second place at the iGEM Hackathon for the development of a Human Practices Maturity Model Toolkit, also deserves special mention. The project was realized with the support of the "Principal Investigators" Prof. Dr. Alexander Heisterkamp and PD Dr. Stefan Kalies, as well as the "Instructors" Lara Gentemann, Niklas Rüprich, Anna E. Seidler and Sören Donath. The scientists of the Biophotonics Group at the Institute of Quantum Optics supported the students in all project phases and made it possible for them to use the laboratories of the Biophotonics Group at NIFE. The following LUH students were involved in the "Hydro Guardian" project: Leon Kasperek, Lisa Marie de Sousa Miranda, Davin Höllmann, Jan Schimansky, Vanessa Bruhn, Jan Niklas Gelhoet, Jule Kiel, Lara Patyk, Emilie Baron, Aylin Talu, Céline Beckhausen, Kristina Bittroff, Nico Kowitz, Veronika Marx, Elena Zukina, Karlina Mundin, Jules Pourtawaf and Milena Müller. Click here for the project page. Text: Milena Müller