EndoSeek : detecting endometriosis 2021 - Team Presentation Video
Channel: iGEM Paris-Saclay
Date: 29/10/2021

Endometriosis is a painful and poorly known pathology caused by proliferating uterine-lining cells outside of the uterus. It affects approximately 10% of women worldwide and can take up to 8 years to be diagnosed. Some blood-circulating microRNAs could constitute promising biomarkers as their concentration differs between patients with endometriosis and healthy women. iGEM GO-Paris-Saclay project EndoSeek aims to develop a new diagnostic tool to detect these miRNAs, exploiting the nucleases Cas13a and Cas14a1 and the production of a fluorescent signal that could be measured with a smartphone. We modeled the signal amplification provided by our nuclease cascade and attempted to identify new miRNAs endometriosis biomarkers from a public database using artificial intelligence. We created a video game to inform adults and children above 10 about endometriosis and the possibilities opened by synthetic biology. Finally, following our dialogue with patients and doctors, we questioned the ethical implications linked to diagnoses.