The 2016 iGEM season has officially begun! This year, the Boston University LCP group is sponsoring two teams of undergraduate students to compete at the prestigious International Genetically Engineered Machine competition in October. 2016 marks the sixth consecutive competition year for BU’s Wet-lab iGEM team, which has consistently been awarded with the Gold Medal level of achievement. It will be the inaugural year for BU’s Hardware iGEM team, which will be competing in a special new Hardware track at the competition. Both teams recently met up at a kick-off event to learn more about the origins of Synthetic Biology, current challenges and new directions in the field, and how the iGEM competition fits in to the overall picture. The students are excited to work more closely with graduate mentors Divya Israni and Ryan Silva, under the supervision of Professors Doug Densmore, Wilson Wong and Mo Khalil this summer. Stay tuned for more information about their progress!
iGem Student Spotlight: Jeffrey Marano
Class of 2018
Brewster, NY
Major: Biomedical engineering
A rising junior at Boston University, Jeffrey Marano has been interested in science from a very young age. As a child, he was a huge reader, and stories like R.L. Stevenson’s Dr. Jekyll and Mr. Hyde fascinated him. His grandfather, a nuclear physicist, also inspired him to pursue his passion for science.
“What matters more on a global scale is what you produce, not what other people think of you,” Jeffrey said.
Throughout high school, Jeffrey was a tutor for students with ADHD and autism, and now he hopes to one day become a professor, after spending some time working with endemic diseases in Asia or Africa.
Jeffrey was first introduced to iGem though his work with Wilson Wong, with whom he did work on genetic logic circuits. So far, he said iGem has been great for working in a team environment, and he is eager to get in the lab and start working.
“I haven’t blown anything up in the lab yet,” he said of his experience thus far in BU’s engineering program, noting that he considers this a major success.
Editor's Note: Jeffrey Marano was in the top 5 of Brewster High School 2014 Graduating Class.