20 years of Advancing Biosafety and Biosecurity at iGEM
““iGEM is an incredible organization and is very valuable to the world. It is a unique setting that is not only building the future workforce for synthetic biology, but is instilling in them reflection and responsibility in a way that can be found nowhere else.””
Synthetic biology holds tremendous promise for addressing global challenges, but like all powerful technologies, there also are risks of accidental or deliberate misuse that could cause harm. As the heart of synthetic biology, iGEM has been training the future leaders of this field to reflect on potential harms and appropriately manage risks. This requires that they think beyond their lab work, anticipating the impacts of their projects, assessing biosafety and biosecurity risks, dealing with dual use, building skills in stakeholder engagement, and otherwise embodying a culture of responsibility.
In honor of the 20th year of iGEM, I’d like to take a look back on some of the highlights of iGEM’s history in building a strong culture of responsibility for biosafety and biosecurity.
2007
iGEM’s Safety and Security Committee was formed
2008
All teams were required to answer biosafety questions about their project to be eligible to win any medal or grand prize.
16% of teams included a safety section on their wiki pages (see Guan et al., 2013)
2009
Paris 2009 (France) focused on biosafety and biosecurity in an extensive report they created for their wiki.
74% of teams included a safety section on their wiki pages.
2010
In 2010, Team VT-ENSIMAG Biosecurity (United States) developed a prototype sequence screening software, GenoTHREAT, in accordance with a draft sequence screening guidance published by the United States Government.
The Safety Commendation award was created to recognize teams demonstrating excellence in addressing biosafety and biosecurity issues.
82% of teams included a safety section on their wiki pages
VT-ENSIMAG Biosecurity 2010 (United States) developed a prototype sequence screening software, GenoTHREAT, in accordance with a draft sequence screening guidance published by the United States Government. Safety Commendation, Undergrad Division.
SDU-Denmark 2010 (Denmark) proposed a watermarking standard for synthetically engineered parts, comprising a license and information on how to contact the creating team, as well as all relevant information and characterizations of the parts, accessible from the Registry. Safety Commendation, Overgrad Division.
2011
In 2011, Team Imperial College London (United Kingdom) developed a toxin/anti-toxin system “GeneGuard” to prevent horizontal gene transfer as a solution for preventing the exchange of genetic material from GMOs to naturally occurring microbes.
The Safety and Security Committee created its first formal and up-scalable screening process.
100% of teams included a safety section on their wiki pages
Imperial College London 2011 (United Kingdom) developed a toxin/anti-toxin system “GeneGuard” to prevent horizontal gene transfer as a solution for preventing the exchange of genetic material from GMOs to naturally occurring microbes. Safety Commendation – Europe, Undergrad Division.
IIT_Madras 2011 (India) developed a light-based screening technique to reduce the need to use antibiotics in everyday experiments, and minimize the risk of horizontal gene transfer and antibiotic resistance. Safety Commendation – Asia, Undergrad Division.
Gaston Day School 2011 (United States) included components within their kit to prevent release of engineered bacteria, and estimated the risk of spreading engineered bacteria into the environment in the event of accidental release. Safety Commendation – Americas, Undergrad Division.
2012
Paris_Bettencourt 2012 (France) developed a modular containment system “bWARE” to substantially reduce the risk of horizontal gene transfer while remaining compatible with existing devices in the Registry. Safety Commendation – Europe, Undergrad Division.
Grenoble 2012 (France) proposed a “Biobrick Safety Sheet” that could be used as a standard to communicate information and observations about the origin, function, and potential risks of engineered parts. Safety Commendation – Europe, Undergrad Division.
Calgary 2012 (Canada) tackled four major safety concerns within their project, including potential harm to natural flora in the environment, competition between engineered bacteria and naturally occurring bacteria, gene transfer, and mutations that may prevent safety measures from working. Safety Commendation - Americas West, Undergrad Division.
Colombia 2012 (Colombia) provided detailed documentation on their wiki about how they mitigated risks posed by chemical reagents, bacterial strains, hazardous physical agents, impacts of engineered strains on public health and the environment, and potential misuse of engineered strains and biological parts and devices. Safety Commendation – Latin America, Undergrad Division.
Fudan D 2012 (China). Safety Commendation – Asia, Undergrad Division.
2013
In 2013, Team Lethbridge (Canada) worked with the gene synthesis industry to test whether their screening techniques could detect illicit orders that had undergone a frame shift.
Safety documentation was improved by implementing standardized forms eliciting information on chassis and part risk group levels in place of wiki-based safety declarations.
90% of teams reported using a chassis no higher than risk group level 1; the remaining 10% reported using risk group level 2 organisms as a chassis
55% of teams reported using a new or modified coding region from a risk group level 1 organism, 31% risk group level 2 parts, 2% risk group level 3 parts, 12% other
Lethbridge 2013 (Canada) worked with the gene synthesis industry to test whether their screening techniques could detect illicit orders that had undergone a frame shift. Safety Commendation, Overgrad Division.
2014
Aachen 2014 (Germany) integrated safety into the design of their project by developing a closed system measurement device “WatsOn” to prevent the escape of pathogens and genetically modified sensor cells.
Aachen 2014 (Germany) integrated safety into the design of their project by developing a closed system measurement device “WatsOn” to prevent the escape of pathogens and genetically modified sensor cells. Safety Commendation, Overgrad Division.
SMTexas 2014 (United States). Safety Commendation, High School Division
2015
Bielefeld-CeBiTec 2015 (Germany) created a report on the dual-use nature of advanced biotechnology that provides an excellent review of this issue and serves as an important resource for iGEM teams. Safety Commendation, Overgrad Division.
2016
iGEM teams work on the cutting edge of technology, which carries a certain amount of risk. After discovering that an iGEM project in 2016 included a gene drive, the iGEM Safety Committee worked closely with the team to minimize the risks. Gene drives were banned in iGEM projects shortly after. Committee members later published iGEM and Gene Drives: A Case Study for Governance in Health Security Jan/Feb 2022 issue.
Arizona State 2016 (United States) wrote a white paper on context specific risk assessment, where they considered how risks associated with parts in their project might change if they were to come into contact with different organisms. Safety Commendation, Overgrad Division.
Team Minnesota 2016 worked with iGEM’s Safety & Security Committee after it was discovered that their project included a gene drive, serving as a case study for governance and prompting iGEM’s policy to not allow gene drives in projects without a special exception from the Safety Committee.
2017
Wageningen_UR 2017 (Netherlands) integrated safety and security into the design of their project, making decisions about biocontainment, risk assessment, and fault tree analysis, and including these important topics in their presentation at the Jamboree. Safety Commendation, Overgrad Division.
2018
Bielefeld-CeBiTec 2018 (Germany) identified a dual use concern in a project not using pathogens, consulted with the community on views around dual use issues, developed resources to help other teams think about this issue, and encouraged teams to use these resources, rewarding them with a button for their wikis. Safety Commendation, Overgrad Division.
NUS_Singapore-A 2018 (Singapore) developed a safety work flow to ensure that their extracted product was microbe-free, including a guide on how to obtain permission from the iGEM Safety Committee to safely bring biomanufactured products out of the lab. Safety Commendation, Undergrad Division.
2019
UCL 2019 (United Kingdom) created a risk assessment for outreach events that considered the materials included in interactive sessions and exhibits to ensure they did not pose a risk to the members of the public. Safety Commendation, Undergrad Division.
2020
First Values & Risks Workshops (reference)
TU_Delft 2020 (Netherlands) detailed Safe-by-Design measures for their project and consulted with experts to develop a risk assessment strategy, including experiments designed to test the safety of their project and comply with regulations. Safety Commendation, Overgrad Division.
2021
In 2021, Team Marburg (Germany) centered their project around engineering chloroplasts as a way to ensure biocontainment of genetically modified crops, detailing the biosafety concerns for cell-free systems and agricultural use of transplastomic plants.
First Safety & Security Grant (reference)
First generation of Responsibility Fellows (reference)
Second Values & Risks Workshops (reference)
First Dual Use Workshop (reference)
Safety and Security award formalized in judging for the first time
ZJU-China 2021 (China) integrated safety into the design by selecting human type5 adenovirus as the chassis organism, incorporating a miRNA modulated suicide switch, tumor specific promoter, and cell recognition mechanism to mitigate risks to people and the environment. Winner Safety and Security Award, Undergrad Division.
Leiden 2021 (Netherlands) created a Safe-by-Design system based on extensive research and expert consultation to minimize risks, including spontaneous mutations, environmental consequences, horizontal gene transfer, escape of genetically modified organisms, competition, bioterrorism, and potential consumption by humans. Co-winner Safety and Security Award, Overgrad Division.
Marburg 2021 (Germany) centered their project around engineering chloroplasts as a great way to ensure biocontainment of genetically modified crops, detailing the biosafety concerns for cell-free systems and agricultural use of transplastomic plants. Co-winner Safety and Security Award, Overgrad Division
2022
Second Safety & Security Grant (reference)
Third Values & Risks Workshops (reference)
Second generation of Responsibility Fellows (reference)
Compliance and verification for the BWC Workshop (reference)
Synthetic Biology Beyond Containment Workshop (reference)
First Responsibility Conference (reference)
HKUST 2022 (Hong Kong) designed a cell-free system to reduce the risks associated with their project, incorporating expert feedback to accelerate the experimental process and optimize the quality of their cell extracts. Winner Safety and Security Award, Undergrad Division
Leiden 2022 (Netherlands) worked with the Dutch National Institute for Public Health and Environment to implement Safe-by-Design in their project, including a safety assessment, development of a cell-free system, use of a closed system for production, and consideration of waste disposal, medical regulations and ethical questions. Winner Safety and Security Award, Overgrad Division.
Mingdao 2022 (China) incorporated their previous iGEM team experience and implemented ideas from their previous iGEM team experience as well as from other iGEM teams, the scientific literature, and biotechnology companies in creating a safe design and proof-of-concept for animal use. Co-winner Safety and Security Award, High School Division.
Wego_Taipei 2022 (Taiwan) built upon the biosafety systems of other iGEM teams to create a combination system that incorporates filtering to prevent leakage of engineered bacteria, naturally inhibiting bacterial growth, and expressing biosensors. Co-winner Safety and Security Award, High School Division.
As we celebrate 20 years of iGEM, my colleagues and I are very proud of all that our community has been able to accomplish in promoting safe, secure, and responsible pathways forward in the field of synthetic biology.
In closing, I would like to thank all of the individuals who have served in leadership positions, those on the Safety and Security Committee, the many volunteers who have offered their time and expertise, and the iGEM teams themselves in applying their ingenuity and energy to shape and support responsible innovation at iGEM. We’re all excited to see how the 2023 teams will implement their ideas for biosafety and biosecurity in synthetic biology!
