About this Research Topic
Systems Biology emphasizes the interconnectedness and interactions of various biological components within living organisms. Integrating these principles into biomedical research and healthcare to advance diagnostic and therapeutic capabilities offers insights into complex biological processes, networks, and dynamics. This addresses critical challenges in healthcare delivery, focusing on the development of faster, cheaper, and more effective diagnostic techniques to improve global access to medical treatment, enhance preventive healthcare, public health, and epidemiology. Existing technologies can be improved, and accessibility to novel therapies can be addressed, thereby bolstering a diverse array of health and medical challenges. Technologies like biological standard parts and biocircuitry expand testing, designing, and synthesizing capacities within biological systems, driving advancements in digital biology, pattern recognition, and artificial protein construction.
Our objective is to spotlight the multifaceted applications of Systems Biology as a potent tool for biomedical innovations and healthcare. This includes, but is not limited to:
Diagnostics: from harnessing CRISPR/Cas9 technology for precision gene editing and targeting vector-borne diseases at their source to bolstering public health measures for pandemic preparedness, we seek to delve into a diverse array of critical challenges.
Therapeutics: we also explore RNAi/siRNA viral vectors for targeted gene silencing to combat biofilm formation and advancing gene therapy approaches, encompassing a wide spectrum of topics. We are keen on investigating novel strategies for vaccine development, as well as exploring the potential of probiotics and nutritional supplements in promoting health, fertility, contraceptives, and uterine health interventions.
Foundational Advances in Medical Research: Exploration of novel organisms and advancements in DNA assembly and storage techniques, essential for shaping the landscape of medical biotechnology. Furthermore, we address critical biosafety concerns, including biocontainment strategies and dual-use applications, essential for ensuring the responsible advancement of medical biotechnology. Lastly, efforts extend to developing new hardware tools tailored to the unique needs of medical research, enabling breakthroughs in understanding and treating human diseases.
Biomanufacturing in Pharmaceuticals and Medical Devices: From advancing micro-scale manufacturing techniques tailored for pharmaceutical production to sustainable fabrications of medical devices, we aim to explore innovative approaches that address the evolving needs of healthcare. We aim to drive forward biomanufacturing innovations that enhance the quality, accessibility, and sustainability of pharmaceuticals and medical devices.
Exemplary iGEM Projects:
2023 iGEM McGill (Canada) won the Grand Prize for developing a programmable and modular oncogene targeting and pyroptosis inducing system, utilizing Craspase, a CRISPR RNA-guided, RNA activated protease, which mediates their personalized therapeutic approach.
2023 iGEM UGM-Indonesia (Indonesia) was nominated for the Best Diagnostics Project award for developing a novel Colorectal Cancer (CRC) screening biodevice, utilizing the Loop-Initiated RNA Activator (LIRA). This novel approach holds the potential of ensuring a safer and highly accessible early screening for CRC, especially in rural areas.
2023 iGEM UCAS-China (China) was nominated for the Best Foundational Advance Project award for developing a robust quorum sensing-based expression biosensor platform, using synthetic biology to construct an artificially organized signaling cascade, covering multiple uses.
Learn more about iGEM Projects .
Scope:
This Research Topic encourages submissions from the iGEM community and researchers around the globe who work in areas intersecting Systems Biology, Synthetic Biology and Biomedical innovations and healthcare. Investigators who pioneer the development of potent technologies integrating these fields with a focus on diagnostics, therapeutics, foundational advances and biomanufacturing for pharmaceuticals are particularly encouraged to submit their research. We invite researchers to share their findings in the form of original research, reviews, perspectives, technology and code, or novel methods and/or their novel applications.
Please note manuscripts that are purely synthetic without a systems approach (i.e. at multiple levels/scales/time points or using multiple methods such as multi-omics) will be transferred for consideration in Frontiers in Synthetic Biology and will not form part of the iGEM 2024 collection. Please see our 2023 iGEM collection for an idea of systems level papers.
Our objective is to spotlight the multifaceted applications of Systems Biology as a potent tool for biomedical innovations and healthcare. This includes, but is not limited to:
Diagnostics: from harnessing CRISPR/Cas9 technology for precision gene editing and targeting vector-borne diseases at their source to bolstering public health measures for pandemic preparedness, we seek to delve into a diverse array of critical challenges.
Therapeutics: we also explore RNAi/siRNA viral vectors for targeted gene silencing to combat biofilm formation and advancing gene therapy approaches, encompassing a wide spectrum of topics. We are keen on investigating novel strategies for vaccine development, as well as exploring the potential of probiotics and nutritional supplements in promoting health, fertility, contraceptives, and uterine health interventions.
Foundational Advances in Medical Research: Exploration of novel organisms and advancements in DNA assembly and storage techniques, essential for shaping the landscape of medical biotechnology. Furthermore, we address critical biosafety concerns, including biocontainment strategies and dual-use applications, essential for ensuring the responsible advancement of medical biotechnology. Lastly, efforts extend to developing new hardware tools tailored to the unique needs of medical research, enabling breakthroughs in understanding and treating human diseases.
Biomanufacturing in Pharmaceuticals and Medical Devices: From advancing micro-scale manufacturing techniques tailored for pharmaceutical production to sustainable fabrications of medical devices, we aim to explore innovative approaches that address the evolving needs of healthcare. We aim to drive forward biomanufacturing innovations that enhance the quality, accessibility, and sustainability of pharmaceuticals and medical devices.
Exemplary iGEM Projects:
2023 iGEM McGill (Canada) won the Grand Prize for developing a programmable and modular oncogene targeting and pyroptosis inducing system, utilizing Craspase, a CRISPR RNA-guided, RNA activated protease, which mediates their personalized therapeutic approach.
2023 iGEM UGM-Indonesia (Indonesia) was nominated for the Best Diagnostics Project award for developing a novel Colorectal Cancer (CRC) screening biodevice, utilizing the Loop-Initiated RNA Activator (LIRA). This novel approach holds the potential of ensuring a safer and highly accessible early screening for CRC, especially in rural areas.
2023 iGEM UCAS-China (China) was nominated for the Best Foundational Advance Project award for developing a robust quorum sensing-based expression biosensor platform, using synthetic biology to construct an artificially organized signaling cascade, covering multiple uses.
Learn more about iGEM Projects .
Scope:
This Research Topic encourages submissions from the iGEM community and researchers around the globe who work in areas intersecting Systems Biology, Synthetic Biology and Biomedical innovations and healthcare. Investigators who pioneer the development of potent technologies integrating these fields with a focus on diagnostics, therapeutics, foundational advances and biomanufacturing for pharmaceuticals are particularly encouraged to submit their research. We invite researchers to share their findings in the form of original research, reviews, perspectives, technology and code, or novel methods and/or their novel applications.
Please note manuscripts that are purely synthetic without a systems approach (i.e. at multiple levels/scales/time points or using multiple methods such as multi-omics) will be transferred for consideration in Frontiers in Synthetic Biology and will not form part of the iGEM 2024 collection. Please see our 2023 iGEM collection for an idea of systems level papers.
Keywords: Systems Biology, Biomedical, Healthcare, Diagnostics, DNA, RNA, Pharmaceuticals, Medical Devices, Therapeutics, iGEM
Important Note: All contributions to this Research Topic must be within the scope of the section and journal to which they are submitted, as defined in their mission statements. Frontiers reserves the right to guide an out-of-scope manuscript to a more suitable section or journal at any stage of peer review.
