Cultivarium and ATCC Support iGEM Teams Striving to Advance the Field of Synthetic Biology

iGEM is a worldwide synthetic biology competition aimed at graduate, university, and high school students.

WATERTOWN, Mass. and MANASSAS, Va., April 2, 2024 /PRNewswire/ -- Cultivarium, the focused research organization creating open-source tools to expand access to uncharacterized microorganisms, and ATCC, the world's premier biological materials management and standards organization, today announced a groundbreaking collaboration to help iGEM 2024 teams access non-model microbes for biotechnology. The annual iGEM Competition involves multidisciplinary student teams from across the globe that compete for medals and awards by designing, building, and testing genetically engineered systems using standard biological parts called BioBricks. Working in and outside the lab, iGEM teams aim to create sophisticated synthetic biology projects that can positively contribute to their communities and the world.

Cultivarium and ATCC are committing to empowering the creativity of iGEM teams with diverse and innovative microbial resources to expand the horizons of synthetic biology research. iGEM teams will gain access to a rich selection of non-model microbes curated by ATCC and Cultivarium's expertise and technologies for new frontiers in bioengineering. During the past 20 years, 70,000+ iGEM participants have entered 5,000 synthetic biology projects for the competition, some of which have led to doctoral thesis topics and the launch of new companies and research endeavors.

"We are delighted to join forces with ATCC to support iGEM teams in their pursuit of scientific discovery and innovation," said Henry Lee, PhD, co-founder and chief executive officer at Cultivarium. "By pairing Cultivarium's capabilities and ATCC's enormous and taxonomically diverse collection of microbes we can support iGEM teams to be bold, creative and drive breakthroughs in synthetic biology."

"At ATCC, we are committed to advancing scientific research and education globally," said Ruth Cheng, PhD, senior vice president and general manager of research and industrial solutions at ATCC. "We are proud to contribute our expertise and ATCC's authenticated microbes to develop the next generation of talent applying synthetic biology across industries such as agriculture, food production, climate change, and human health."

Together, Cultivarium and ATCC are poised to revolutionize the landscape of synthetic biology by equipping iGEM teams with the tools and resources needed to tackle global challenges and unlock the full potential of non-model microbes.

Learn more about this sponsorship opportunity here.

About Cultivarium
Cultivarium is creating open-source life science tools to expand access to novel microorganisms, inspire new research avenues, and push the frontiers of biotechnology. A Convergent Research Focused Research Organization (FRO), Cultivarium's five-year mission is to generate and share foundational genomic resources and bioengineering techniques for making new microorganisms accessible to research and development organizations. For more information, visit cultivarium.org and follow us on X and LinkedIn.

About ATCC
ATCC is a premier global biological materials and information resource and standards organization and the leading developer and supplier of authenticated cell lines, microorganisms, and associated data for academia, industry, and government. With a history of scientific contributions spanning nearly a century, ATCC offers an unmatched combination of being the world's largest and most diverse collection of biological reference materials and data, and is a mission-driven, trusted partner that supports and encourages scientific collaboration. ATCC products, services, partnerships, and people provide the global scientific community with credible, advanced, model systems to support complex research and innovations in basic science, drug discovery, translational medicine, and public health. ATCC is a 501(c)3 nonprofit organization with headquarters in Manassas, Virginia, and a research and technology center of excellence in Gaithersburg, Maryland. To learn more, visit atcc.org.

Cultivarium Contact:
[email protected]

ATCC Contact:
Kim Testa
Senior Director, Corporate Communications & Public Affairs
[email protected]

SOURCE Cultivarium