iGEM 2015 — Team Westminster

# Team:Westminster/Notebook

* [![](https://static.igem.org/mediawiki/2015/2/25/Team_Westminster_Logo.png)](https://2015.igem.org/Team%3AWestminster)
* Team
  + [Team Members](https://2015.igem.org/Team%3AWestminster/Team)
  + [Attributions](https://2015.igem.org/Team%3AWestminster/Attributions)
* Project
  + [Application](https://2015.igem.org/Team%3AWestminster/Application)
  + [Description](https://2015.igem.org/Team%3AWestminster/Description)
  + [Experiments](https://2015.igem.org/Team%3AWestminster/Experiments)
  + [Results](https://2015.igem.org/Team%3AWestminster/Results)
  + [Biocontainment](https://2015.igem.org/Team%3AWestminster/Biocontainment)
  + [Safety](https://2015.igem.org/Team%3AWestminster/Safety)
* Parts
  + [Team Parts](https://2015.igem.org/Team%3AWestminster/Parts)
* [Notebook](https://2015.igem.org/Team%3AWestminster/Notebook)
  + [Lab Notebook](https://2015.igem.org/Team%3AWestminster/Labnotebook)
* Outreach
  + [Collaborations](https://2015.igem.org/Team%3AWestminster/Collaborations)
  + [iGEM UK MeetUp](https://2015.igem.org/Team%3AWestminster/iGEMUKMeetUp)
  + [Human Practices](https://2015.igem.org/Team%3AWestminster/Practices)
[![](https://static.igem.org/mediawiki/2015/8/8d/Team_Westminster_Twitter.png)](https://twitter.com/WestminsteriGEM)
[![](https://static.igem.org/mediawiki/2015/7/71/Team_Westminster_Facebook.png)](https://www.facebook.com/WestminsteriGEM2015)
[![](https://static.igem.org/mediawiki/2015/a/a2/Team_Westminster_Instagram.png)](http://instagram.com/westminsterigem2015)
![iGEM Westminster Logo](https://static.igem.org/mediawiki/2015/3/3a/Team_Westminster_iGEM_Logo_blue.png)

### Notebook

#### January

• Formation of an iGEM team
• Discussion on what topic should we explore together with team members and supervisors

#### February

• Team Westminster started working on sponsorships as well as securing iGEM fee for the team through university’s dean approval
• Primer design, and general PCR tutorial

#### March

![](https://static.igem.org/mediawiki/2015/4/4c/Team_Westmister_Members.jpg)
• Choosing team name ‘Electrocoli’ that represents teams’ project theme and designing the logo was the main agenda during March’s meetings.
• Further work on sponsorships continues.
• Tutorial about different assembly strategies
• Exploring issues of containment and biosafety.
• Building our team strategies for upcoming months

#### April

• Designing group timeline and dividing tasks

![timeline](https://static.igem.org/mediawiki/2015/c/cd/Team_Westmister_Timeline.jpg)

#### May

Exams period

#### June

• Starting initial lab work, working on basic laboratory skills.
• Media preparation, sterilisation techniques, pipetting accuracy

#### July

15/07/2015 - School Science Fair
![](https://static.igem.org/mediawiki/2015/2/2c/Team_Westminster_15july.jpg)
• The year 7 and 8's of Westminster Academy had a science fair where many of the students had produced stalls for a variety of different topics, e.g. History of the Earth, How to make Ice Cream and many more.
• Our team also went along and set up a stall with posters and video projections on iGem, synthetic biology and a brief outline of our project idea for 2015.
• We also gave out sweets and engaged the children by introducing them to the topics and answering any questions.

16/07/2015 - Group meeting with UCL and Birkbeck
![](https://static.igem.org/mediawiki/2015/f/fd/Team_Westminster_16july.jpg)
• Firstly our team had a meetup to discuss sponsorships, roles within the team and general housekeeping.
• We then met members of the UCL and Birkbeck team on the UCL campus where collaboration was discussed for the London meet up, possibly on the 4th of September, after a synthetic biology conference, which runs from the 1st- 3rd September.
• A core team was established with members from each university to organise this event, to look into possible locations, workshops and invitations.

21/07/2015 - Lab work
• Met in the lab start taking photos for our wiki page and for our individual pictures in lab coats.
• There was also progress made on our wiki page.

22/07/2015 - Web seminar with Synbiota
• Synbiota held a web seminar explaining the new assembly method and how putting the parts together works.
• We also set up a gofundme page so family and friends could donate.
[![](https://static.igem.org/mediawiki/2015/2/2a/Team_Westminster_22july.jpg)](http://www.gofundme.com/zyu65ng)

26/07/2015 - Presentation preparation
• A small sub group met up to put together the presentation for the London iGEM meetup.
![](https://static.igem.org/mediawiki/2015/c/c4/Team_Westminster_28July.jpg)

28/07/2015 - Public outreach
• We went to hyde park to spread some awareness about synthetic biology. Whilst there we found out how little the public new about synthetic biology and microbial fuel cells.

29/07/2015 - Group meetup
![](https://static.igem.org/mediawiki/2015/c/ca/Team_Westminster_29july.jpg)
• This meetup was to get everyone up to speed as we have quite a large group and what we need to be doing and organising such as funding ideas, uniform and hosting the UK meetup.

31/07/2015 - London meetup
• We first all met up at the university to make sure we all could each explain the project, the chosen presenters used this time to practice in front of us for feedback.
• We went to Birkbeck University where there were other universities such as UCL, Kent and Biohackers, each group gave a presentation. We then were provided with food and drink and went around looking at posters and discussing projects.
• After this some people went for drinks at the UCL student union.

#### August

7/08/2015 - Lab work
![](https://static.igem.org/mediawiki/2015/8/8e/Team_Westminster_7august.jpg)
• All of our parts and primers finally came so now we can begin the actual lab work. This is more preparation work.

08/08/2015 - Car boot
![](https://static.igem.org/mediawiki/2015/d/d5/Team_Westminster_8August.JPG)
• Some team members went to St Augustine's School for a car boot sale to help fundraise for the UK meetup.

10/08/2015 - Lab work
• Joining fragments of DNA together

11/08/2015- Lab work
![](https://static.igem.org/mediawiki/2015/a/a9/Team_Westminster_10august.jpg)
• Prepared primers into working concentrations
• Prepared for PCR
• Ran PCR

12/08/2015 - Lab Work
• Run gel electrophoresis of PCR of products to confirm genes
• Confirmed location for the UK meet up

17/08/2015 - Venues
• Went to the Charles Darwin House as a possible venue![](https://static.igem.org/mediawiki/2015/6/6e/Team_Westminster_17august.JPG)

19/08/2015 - Meeting with the Dean
• Meeting with the Dean for some possible funding for London meetup and giant Jamboree

21/08/2015 - Team Meeting
• Final preparation for UK Meet Up
• Lab work (PCR of RDP parts)

24/08/2015 - Lab work
• Follow up after PCR, preparation of gel electrophoresis and measurement of PCR product on NanoDrop.

25/08/2015 - Skype with University of Cambridge
• Cambridge will be holding a workshop at the UK meet up so, facilities and time slots were discussed.

27/08/2015 - Lab work
• Working on Synbiota RDP assembly using bead washing system

26/08/2015 -Human practice
• Contacted Microbial Robotics to answer questions about the scientific, ethical and social implications of synthetic biology.

01/09/15- Build up to UK meet up
• Organising catering for the meet, ordering sandwiches.
• Finding and speaking to possible guest speakers.
• Sorting out the room requirements and entry into the venue for the guest teams.

02/09/15- Build up UK meet up
• Buying drinks and other bits for the MeetUp.
• Rearranging the schedule to help suit all the teams.

08/09/15 - Wet lab work
• DNA digest
• Transformation

10/09/15 - BioBrick preparation
• Checking if our BioBrick works

18/09/15 - Final touches on wiki
• BioBricks have been freeze-dry and sent to Boston
• Final touches on wiki tabs