Previous iGEM teams & projects

In 2025 the team developed NomNomNylon, a circular, biology-based process for upcycling nylon textile waste. Engineered nylonases depolymerise nylon fibres into soluble monomers, which are then converted by an engineered strain of Pseudomonas putida into value-added compounds such as the textile dye indigoidine, a sustainable alternative to petrochemical indigo. The process diverts textile waste from landfill and incineration and recovers carbon from synthetic fibres.

In 2024 the team developed a novel biosensing platform that combines hormone-receptor based detection with a fluorescent RNA aptamer and a custom software tool to analyse chemical-target interactions. Their aim: provide a rapid, cost-effective method for detecting endocrine-disrupting compounds in drinking water and environmental samples, thereby enhancing human health, protecting ecosystems, and advancing the UN Sustainable Development Goals for clean water, good health, and life below water.

The DTU Biobuilders' journey begins amidst news stories and public health anxiety, as more and more reports about the “forever chemicals”, collectively known as PFAS, rings around the Copenhagen area.

The DTU Biobuilders seek to utilize lignocellulosic waste for production of valuable compounds using A. niger. However, a toxic compound called furfural prevents lignocellulosic waste to be utilized fully.

The DTU Biobuilders seek to build a methane consuming yeast cell factory which can use methane as the sole carbon source.

The DTU Biobuilders seek to RESHAPE mycelial morphology in filamentous fungi to aid industrial production of proteins and small molecules.

The DTU BioBuilders worked on a software to generate a library of engineered promoters for any given organism - or multiple organisms. As a proof of concept the software was tested in Aspergillus niger.

The DTU BioBuilders worked to develop a toolbox so properties of fungi could be manipulated and exploited to build fungal materials.

Envenomation by snakebite is one of the most neglected diseases with an estimated 5 million bites. These result in about 100,000 deaths and 400,000 disabilities annually. This project explores a new method to diagnose snake venom using synthetic biology to produce substrates, targeting the distinctive venom proteases of different snake families.

Yeastilization focuses on creating a combined solution of the worlds future excessive consumption of crops for non-feed purposes and increasing waste generation. By using a non-conventional yeast, Yarrowia liplytica, as chassis, we provide a new avenue for production of biotech products. 

The Synthesizer is a standardized method to rationally design the synthesis of novel biologically active compounds, potentially revolutionizing the production of products such as pigments, antibiotics and immunosuppressant drugs

The Spinach RNA is an aptamer, which can bind to DFHBI to create a fluorophore that resembles GFP in spectral properties. This provides a way to easily quantify RNA concentration and allows promoter activities to be calculated in units Polymerases Per Second (PoPS). 

The project worked towards developing a microbial system for removing ammonia (NH3) from waste water, and via two E. coli mutants, and turning it into nitrous oxide (N2O).

We are designing a novel standardized assembly system, called "Plug 'n' Play with DNA", where any biological parts can be gathered without use of restriction enzymes and ligases.

We have investigated a novel type of RNA regulation based on the chitobiose system, where the inhibition caused by a small RNA is relieved by another small RNA called trap-RNA. We explore the possibility of using the system to uniquely target and repress any gene of interest, potentially providing unprecedented specificity and control of gene silencing. 

The aim of this project is to engineer a genetic bistable switch that produces two different, mutually exclusive outputs when given two different inputs. The switch is based on the repressor-anti-repressor system of the Salmonella phages Gifsy1 and Gifsy2 and the λ-phage anti-termination system. 

By in silico design and computer modelling followed by gene synthesis, we have constructed a molecular NAD+/NADH ratio sensing system in Saccharomyces cerevisiae. The sensor works as an inducible transcription factor being active only at certain levels of the NAD+/NADH ratios.