Bacteria Game is part of the Synthetic Biology project which entered into the 2010 iGem competition.
Bacteria Game
"Is our game playing the rules of evolution?"
Created by Lorenz Adlung, Andreas Beyer, Matthias Breuer, Prof. Ursula Damm and Frank C. Kieschnick
Product Description
The Bacteria Game is a simple all-in-one kit to let homegrown bacteria compete against each other. March in lockstep with nature, breed your own creatures and become coach of your very own athletes. Simply use the included breeding kit to raise your own team and challenge your friends.
Included is everything you need to start instantly:
- Petri dishes
- Bacteria starter set (bacteria culture, agar, toothpicks)
- 2 Game scenarios
- Different Game objects (barriers, forts)
Use the agar to build different landscapes and as a nutrient for your creatures. Inoculate your team on the agar and watch the game begin. Use the included game objects to evolve your team.
Race
Below is an example of a recorded race between two strains of Escherichia coli bacteria using the Bacteria Game kit supplied via the SuperCell online store which allows you to race home-bred bacteria. <videoflash type=vimeo>16214526|640|360</videoflash>
Technical Desciption
The concept of the game is based on the ability of some harmless wild-type bacteria to swim in soft media. Swimming enables the microbes to consume further nutrients if those in their vicinity are already consumed. All bacteria try to get away from the starting point as fast as possible to access fresh media. This mechanism can be employed for a game set-up. Selection and culturing of best swimmers leads to propagation of ideal swimming characteristics, which is why training may help gain a competitive edge. These bacteria can easily be stored in the fridge along with the supplied materials without any risk. The showdown competition is run by synthetic bacteria. Predators and prey communicate and regulate each other's density. Via molecular signals, the predator cells kill the prey while living prey rescues predators. The diverse and colorful crowd surrounding the spectacle was genetically engineered to carry different pigments, which was appreciated at the iGEM competition in 2009.
Our bacteria in motion
While developing the game we also experimented with a synthetic predator-prey system and other types of bacteria which got recorded.
Thanks go to Dr. Ilka Bischof-Pfeifer who kindly provided the videos. <videoflash type=vimeo>16245346|320|240</videoflash> <videoflash type=vimeo>16248328|320|240</videoflash> <videoflash type=vimeo>16245555|320|240</videoflash> Even more videos can be found on Vimeo.
Links
- SuperCell online store
- iGem 2010 competition entry
- Our Bacteria Videos on Vimeo