Setting up an open synthetic biology lab in Abuja, Nigeria
The purpose of this project was to develop an open synthetic biology lab at the University of Bingham in Abuja, Nigeria, where the equipment in the lab can be used freely by any African researcher.
The Idea
African researchers are in need of fast, low cost tools to build scientific capacity and future technology development. The speed and versatility of synthetic biology makes it a prime candidate for this. Furthermore, plant research of significant importance already happens at African universities, primarily focusing on crop protection, controlling disease vectors, and identifying novel bioactive molecules for use as potential disease treatments. Synthetic biology tools could have a significant impact in improving and accelerating these fields of research.
As part of this project, we will develop an open synthetic biology lab at the University of Bingham in Abuja, Nigeria. The equipment in the lab can be used freely by any African researcher.
As well as establishing a lab, we will deliver a molecular biology skills training course at the University of Bingham in August 2015, in order to ensure that the local staff can fully benefit from the possibilities of this new resource. The course will include a synthetic biology component.
The Team
Dr Richard Smith-Unna,
Graduate Student, Department of Plant Sciences, University of Cambridge
Dr Chinyere Okoro,
Postdoctoral Researcher, Sanger Institute, Cambridgeshire
Ms Ibukun Akinrinade,
Graduate Student, Bingham University, New Karu, Nasarawa, Abuja, Nigeria
Dr Vicky Schneider,
Member of Senior Management Team, The Genome Analysis Centre, Norwich
Dr Jelena Aleksic,
Director of Bioinformatics at TReND in Africa (http://trendinafrica.org/)
Project Outputs
Project Report
Summary of the project's achievements and future plans
Project Proposal
Original proposal and application
Project outcomes
List of equipment collected and shipped to Abuja.
Progress Report
The purpose of this project was to develop an open synthetic biology lab at the University of Bingham in Abuja, Nigeria, where the equipment in the lab can be used freely by any African researcher.
Part 1: equipment shipping
There were some unanticipated delays at the beginning of this project, so the whole schedule has been pushed back significantly. A large shipment of equipment was originally ready and packed to be sent from Cambridge in Aug 2015. Unfortunately, due to flooding in the Cambridge area, all electrical equipment was seriously damaged and had to be disposed of, setting the project back significantly.
Thankfully we were able to collect a second shipment of equipment instead. Volunteers in Switzerland (led by Lukas von Tobel) reached out to their local universities, and successfully collected 550kg of equipment, which was then shipped over to Nigeria, and has now been set up as a new lab at University of Bingham. The coordinator at Bingham University was Dr Judith Alawa.
The shipment included molecular biology equipment such as a PCR machine, centrifuges and consumables. The full list of equipment sent is included as a supplementary file to this report.
Part 2: molecular biology workshop
This workshop is scheduled to run in Oct 2016, and will include basic molecular biology techniques as well as an overview of synthetic biology and plant genomics. Instructors from Europe will go over and teach the staff at the University of Bingham. The course coordinator is Mrs Ibukun Akinrinade