This team manipulates genes to create LIFE from SCRATCH!? | BP2B: Student Edition! Ep.02

ℹ️ EPISODE INFO

Released

November 7, 2025

Duration

27m

Channel

Best Place To Build

Watch on YouTube

▶ Open ↗

📝 EPISODE DESCRIPTION

What does it take to create medicine on Mars—or engineer bacteria to solve global problems? Join us as we go behind the scenes with Team iGEM, IIT Madras, in the second episode of the Student Edition of Best Place to Build Podcast. 🔬 What You’ll Discover

1. Inside iGEM: The world’s largest synthetic biology competition, held annually in Paris, where students tackle real-world challenges through biology and engineering.

1. The Science: Learn how synthetic biology applies engineering principles to living systems—like reprogramming bacteria to produce valuable molecules.

1. Real-World Impact: Discover how genetic engineering powers breakthroughs like mass-producing insulin using E. coli, and how IITM’s iGEM team once designed a system to synthesise paracetamol on Mars.

1. The 2025 Project – Epigenetics & Gene Regulation: Get an exclusive look at their CRISPR-based system that controls gene expression through DNA methylation—a bold step into the future of genetic control.

1. Inside the Lab: Watch the team demonstrate Bacterial Transformation, the process of introducing new circular DNA into bacteria to make it express a desired protein.

1. The Interdisciplinary Team: iGEM isn’t just for biotech students. Learn how students from CS, Electrical, Mechanical, and WebOps collaborate—combining computational modelling, engineering, and web tools to bring biology to life.

1. Ethics and Responsibility: Hear the team’s thoughts on bioethics, safety, and the fine balance between innovation and responsibility when manipulating life. 🎥 Subscribe for more stories on the future of science, technology, and student innovation from IIT Madras. #iGEM #SyntheticBiology #GeneticEngineering #CRISPR #BioTech #Engineering #IITMadras #StudentCompetition #Science #Innovation #GeneEditing #Epigenetics #bestplacetobuild Chapters: 00:40 Welcome to the Best Place to Build: Student Edition! 01:00 Introducing team iGEM, IIT Madras 09:10 Inside the synthetic biology lab used by team iGEM 15:26 How do you create life from scratch? 19:45 What’s the structure of the team iGEM? 23:16 Future career paths pursued by students in iGEM 24:50 Closing thoughts on the ethics of synthetic biology

🧾 EPISODE SUMMARY

In this episode of Best Place To Build, This team manipulates genes to create LIFE from SCRATCH!? | BP2B: Student Edition! Ep.02 explores inside IIT Madras iGEM: engineering organisms, teams, and ethics together The video introduces iGEM as an international synthetic biology competition where student teams design their own problem statements and build engineered biological systems to address real-world needs.

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