Integrated Human Practices

In this first edition, the participants came from 5 different Panamanian schools, including ISP, MET, Howard Academy, Oxford School, and La Salle. This increased outreach in participant diversity contributes to our goal of democratizing science. Additionally, the participants had the opportunity to collaborate with students from different schools and nationalities.

Here is the experience of some students:

Veronica Siem

When I joined this course, I wanted to learn how to work with synthetic biology in a lab. During this workshop, I was fascinated with responsable, careful, and exact procedures when we were doing the genetic modifications. This was a unique experience that will help me in a near future because I am now confident in what I want to study.

Daniela Zuluaga

With this course, I wanted to get the hands-on experience of working in a lab to determine if this was something I wanted to do in the future. With the guidance of the teachers, I was able to also understand the conceptual part of what's happening while I was doing the experiment. Working in the lab was really fun, as I got to see what I had learned about, taking place in the lab! With this experience, I was able to determine that working in a lab is something that I want to do later on in life. At the end of this edition, observing with great satisfaction our impact on young participants, we plan to continue training human talent in Panama, working for accessible science for all. We are deeply grateful for the support of more than 20 volunteers, who diligently worked and studied to make these sessions outstanding. Also, for our team of staff who was in charge of all of the organization and logistics to make this experience happen. This event would not have been possible without all of them.

Jaime Reyes

When I joined this course, I wanted to learn how to work with synthetic biology in a lab. During this workshop, I was fascinated with responsable, careful, and exact procedures when we were doing the genetic modifications. This was a unique experience that will help me in a near future because I am now confident in what I want to study.

IGEM workshop:

Representing the Met, around 8 students participated in the iGEM workshop led by the ISP. The workshop consisted of 4-5 online, after school lessons capacitating us with the correct knowledge regarding synthetic biology. Most of the classes were really challenging, since most of the concepts hadn’t been previously explored. The classes were taught by Ms. Marivi Gondola, Mr. Daniel Garcia, and synthetic biology expert: Ediner Fuentes. The lessons prepared us as a team for both our lab-work, and working in the synthetic biology field. The classes were followed by presenting lab-work at the ISP, where we were accompanied by the teachers previously mentioned. During the lab-work, we were isolating and modifying a variant of an E. coli bacteria. As a team, we all thought the lab-work was very entertaining, learning induced, and overall a beautiful way to express our past learning in a hands-on way.

Social Engagement (Interview)

Ms. Patricia Jaar and Food Safety (Meeting with a Local Lab):

On Friday, September 15, 2023, our iGEM team arranged a meeting with a local laboratory for physicochemical and microbiological analysis of food and drinkable water called Food Safety in Panama. The team was able to arrange a meeting with Ms. Patricia Jaar, the manager of the laboratory, as she is a parent from our school community, and generously offered us a meeting to discuss our synthetic biology project. Even though the area of expertise from this laboratory is microbiology focused on bacteria, mold, and yeast in regard to food safety, they were surprised and interested after hearing our project idea. Ms. Patricia Jaar noted how our project itself was a very good initiative. She really loves the idea of using innovative science to solve problems in our local community; it relates to SDG #15 (Life on Land), and how through our knowledge, we become pro-active global citizens. Since synthetic biology involves some elements from microbiology, the whole team at Food Safety was able to get the basics of how our project worked and the different things we worked on to develop our project. Even though our meeting was focused on getting a possible sponsorship from this laboratory, we were also given a tour through their lab facilities. It was a wonderful experience for our iGEM members as they were able to experience firsthand how a professional lab works. They were able to observe different instruments, equipment, and the overall flow of how a lab works. Our iGEM team was able to also meet some of the fellow scientists who worked in this lab and discuss various topics. Some of these worked on previous projects with our mentor, Mr. Ediner Fuentes. This meeting was a huge success as apart from getting a possible sponsor, it was wonderful to meet a scientific community within our community that showed interest in our project. It meant a lot for our team to impress fellow professional scientists with our project idea. Not only this, but the overall learning experience that the iGEM team was able to gain was outstanding.

Banana Producer Interviews in Bocas del Toro, Panama

Interview With Professionals:

Our iGEM team organized a meeting with Cameron Forsythe, a professional. During this interview, our team discussed the effect that Fusarium oxysporum, the crop disease our project will target, has on different crops in Panama (our host country) and in other nations of the world. During the interview, Forsythe was asked about his experience with Fusarium oxysporum, to which he described how "the biggest stressors dealing with Fusarium oxysporum were sanitation and prevention. Quarantining imported plants, making sure to wash boots and tools before working or inspecting the fields" (Forsythe). Besides his emphasis on preventing the disease from getting passed from contaminated equipment, Forsythe also expresses the challenge of "detecting the fungus and informing our workers. Detecting this disease is only apparent when its effects are visible within the plants, like yellowing leaves and stunted growth, although those can be symptoms of other diseases as well" (Forsythe). Forsythe also expresses his concern about the physiological effects Fusarium oxysporum is causing to the workers, as he described how they have become "paranoid" from the possibility of crops being infected. Due to this, they take "extensive and expensive testing," which causes many lost crops, even when the fungus has not settled (Forsythe).

Collaboration (iGEM Panama Evolutech in iGEM Design)

This year, the International School of Panama (ISP) and the Metropolitan School of Panama (MET) worked together to represent Panama at the 2023 Jamboree. The ISP hosted a synthetic biology course called "Biohacker: Unlocking the Secrets of Synthetic Biology" from April 25 to March 6. In this course, members of the MET, alongside other Panamanian schools, attended the course. Through this course, the students from the iGEM Panama Evolutech team (who form part of the Latin America iGEM design league competition, being the only team representing Panama) were able to engage with genetic circuits both theoretically and practically. Capacities were provided to do lab work to isolate and clone strains to evaluate the genetic expression that was desired. Students were also able to share with the different members of the iGEM Panama team, who participate in the Jamboree. After the course was completed, the ISP and the MET formed an alliance to work collaboratively to participate in the Grand Jamboree of 2023. Even though both of these schools are forming a team, due to the ISP's inspiration of the MET, the MET is considering forming an independent iGEM high school team, who would use the previous training and knowledge about genetic circuits to participate as an additional team at the Jamboree in 2024, next year.

Socialization of Results on Social Networks

Both schools relied on the power of social media to spread awareness and knowledge of the field of synthetic biology. Using Instagram accounts with engaging posts, the MET and the ISP shared brief and precise explanations of the field of synthetic biology and the major impact it has in solving fundamental problems in society. Moreover, they worked on sharing how the team is targeting a global issue with the help of Synthetic Technology and iGEM resources. This managed to not only increase awareness and create a movement from the project but also to educate the community, teaching them how synthetic biology is a game changer that can solve various problems such as the Panama Disease. Through the tools of socialization and technology, the team was able to effectively teach the new generations and the local community about how Synthetic Biology is becoming the future of Science and human development.