The 2017 Pasteur iGEM team’s purifying and recycling device awarded the bronze medal

On November 7, 14* students from the 2017 Pasteur iGEM team flew to Boston for the international iGEM competition, which was organized by the Massachusetts Institute of Technology from November 9 through 13, and each year seeks to promote research into synthetic biology. Returning with a bronze medal, the Institut Pasteur team wrapped up an intense 12 months of work for the third year in a row.

 

 

 

The iGEM competition was once again of a very high standard this year. With close to 5,000 participants from 46 countries, it is always very popular with students who see it as a unique opportunity for showcasing advanced projects in the field of synthetic biology research. Most of them traveled to Boston for the Giant Jamboree, the high point of the competition held on November 13.

Among them were 14 students from the 2017 Pasteur iGEM team and their two mentors, who went to present their ÆTHER, indoor air purifying kit project. Unlike commercial air filters, this new device traps air pollutants in the condensed phase, i.e. in water. The aim is also to recover organic pollutants, such as some endocrine disruptors, then treat and break them all down biologically using enzymes so they can be recycled.

 

*From ESPCI (Ecole Nationale Supérieure de Chimie et Physique Industrielle de la ville de Paris), ENSCI (Ecole Nationale Supérieure de Création Industrielle), University of Paris Sud – Jean Monnet, University Pierre-et-Marie-Curie, Ecole polytechnique, Centrale-supélec and Chimie ParisTech.

 

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