iGEM is a competition which focuses on synthetic biology, where teams think of a potential bioengineering solution to a problem they freely choose. On NYUAD’s 10th year at the iGEM Grand Jamboree, the team won gold medal for the second year, and the title “Best Integrated Human Practices Team” for their project, “rEVitalyze.”

While many may view iGEM (International Genetically Engineered Machine) as just an annual synthetic biology competition — academic, research-heavy, and inaccessible to non-STEM students — being part of the team is far more complex. Beyond presenting a scientific project, iGEM participants must also market their idea, communicate it to the public, and document it online. As a result, the team includes not just biologists, but also entrepreneurs, media illustrators, web designers, and engineers. Member selections start in the second half of the fall semester, forming a core team of about 15 people by the spring semester.

The team’s 10-month journey began in spring with the development of a general research theme, paving the way for a summer of experimentation, branching ideas, and trial and error that would continue until the final submission and presentation at the annual iGEM Grand Jamboree.

For iGEM 2025, the first experiments began by June, barely two weeks after the spring semester ended. The project focused on the rare genetic disorder PMM2-CDG, inspired by instructor Ibrahim Chehade’s daughter. In the team’s promotional video, the students explain their aim: to develop a probiotic milk as a potential therapeutic treatment for the condition.

Photo courtesy of NYUAD iGEM.

“And this is the most incredible thing that students selected, and they really pushed hard for that project. And you can see the value behind how appreciative I am for that, not just for my daughter but for the sake of all the children that have this rare disorder actually,” said Chehade.

The Abu Dhabi summer heat and the empty campus made the process even more challenging. Conducting independent research that combined science, entrepreneurship, and community engagement was never easy — especially amid long, hot days and the occasional loneliness of working through uncertainty.

Still, stressful weeks of troubleshooting and setbacks gradually transformed into resilience. As the deadline approached, the shared struggle of overcoming failed experiments and late-night problem-solving drew the team closer together, strengthening their resolve to keep going despite the constant possibility of failure.

Udaya, Class of 2028, joined both the Wet Lab and Education teams for this year’s iGEM and has been involved since her freshman spring. Her determination to quickly grasp the biology required for the project was supported by an upperclassman who patiently guided her through each question.

Gradually, she honed her lab skills through exposure and practice. “It's really different from labs that you do for grades – those [that] are timed, you'd have to do a lab notebook, [and] you're graded. But then, [for] this one, you still have to maintain the lab notebook but you just learn so much better,” said Udaya.

Through hands-on work, many students realised that classroom theory rarely translates neatly into practice. For Diperson, Class of 2027 and a member of the Wet Lab and Education teams, his coding classes barely prepared him for the challenge of building a web app to teach others about their project. “I remember the number of times that we sat down in the library room trying to figure out how to make this, because we've learned coding before, but we're not actually good at it, we hadn't exactly created a project out of it. It was just the two of us sitting on the floor trying to figure out how to do it, and charting out maps on the board and everything.” Fortunately, a teammate working remotely from New York City was available to help with the web development.

Students also discovered their capacity for innovation when faced with limited resources. During a period when power supplies ordered online had not yet arrived, Salma, Class of 2027 and a member of the Dry Lab team, found that power banks could be used to run hardware prototypes.

The inclusion of remote members from New York created additional coordination challenges. Effective teamwork required careful scheduling and clear communication. To manage this, the team relied heavily on When2Meet to plan mandatory meetings and ensure equal participation across time zones. These moments highlighted the strength of student leadership within the group. Returning members from previous years stepped up as team leaders and managers, drawing on their experience to guide new participants and uphold the spirit of iGEM that has endured over the past 10 years.

Photo courtesy of NYUAD iGEM.

“They [the leaders] had the abilities. Sometimes, it’s a matter that you think you might not have it but because of the skill set that you bring in [as a returning student], the new incoming students start looking up to you and you automatically flourish into that leader. In the next year, it's the same thing. It's a cycle,” said Chehade, who has been a steadfast presence for the team. From hit-or-miss dad jokes to replying to text messages at 2 a.m., his support has been instrumental in nurturing leadership and dedication among iGEM members.

Working together for iGEM also meant confronting uncertainty: how far to go, how much to take on, and when to stop refining a 10-month project. The team frequently reached moments of realisation about the scale of their work and had to balance between failed experiments and new directions. “Our students are very eager, very bright, very intelligent, and every single proposal [for] every single year is a PhD-level proposal. Every project they want to do, I tell them, ‘This is an incredible PhD project, [but] we don't have the time for that.’ And it happened this year, and they realized that as they are working through it, not doable in the time frame that they have for iGEM,” said Chehade, expressing immense pride in the team’s ambition. “I wouldn't be surprised that this issue will be there next year, and it's a great issue to have.”

Encouragingly, iGEM does not demand a polished product within a single year. Instead, the research, trial and error, and planning are consolidated into a Wiki page submitted for evaluation, a space that celebrates exploration, learning, and the freedom to fail.

As the Fall semester began, the iGEM team turned its attention to the Integrated Human Practices component of the competition – a branch focused on social outreach, public education, and fostering communication among researchers, patients, and the wider community. One of the most memorable initiatives was the iGEM boot camp for high school students, which participants recalled with great enthusiasm.

From a pool of over 200 applicants, around 30 students were selected to join the two-day boot camp held in late September with the NYUAD iGEM team. For those who organised the event, the experience of inspiring young minds in synthetic biology and science communication remains a cherished highlight.

“People have been emailing us from high schools, [they’ve] been emailing us asking, ‘Oh, how do I take part in this? How can I start this thing in [my] school?,’” said Diperson, recalling how the camp sparked high schoolers’ interest in interdisciplinary research and opportunities like iGEM.

Photo courtesy of NYUAD iGEM.

For Udaya, the boot camp also became a moment of personal reflection. Seeing younger students’ surprise when she described failed experiments as a normal part of research helped her appreciate the hidden struggles behind every success.

“I think back in high school, what they do is they teach you theory and they make it sound like everything's going to work. But then once you get into the lab and you actually do something, there are so many dimensions to a project,” said Udaya. “Things don't work: You don't know why, [and] You don't know how. And then things start to work: You still don't know why, [and] you don't know how. So there's so much failure along the way that eventually leads to success, but nobody really tells you about the trial-and-error part.”

Over the 10-month span of their project, the iGEM team also pursued ambitious outreach efforts — from creating Instagram promotional videos and publishing interviews with PMM2-CDG patients, and their families,to collaborating with external researchers. These interconnected initiatives formed a powerful web of engagement that ultimately impressed the judges at the Grand Jamboree, earning NYUAD the award for Best Integrated Human Practices Team.\

For many, the iGEM experience proved transformative. Despite the anxiety of stepping into unfamiliar territory, what began as a small step evolved into months of learning, perseverance, and discovery. “It's not that people who are researchers who are doing so many things are different from us. It's just the amount of work that we need to put in to make sure that we get to that level,” said Diperson, reflecting on his experience and challenging common misconceptions about research.

As passion, dedication, and intellect came together in Paris, the team’s success symbolized more than an award, it represented a legacy of curiosity and collaboration. Many now hope that NYUAD’s iGEM team will continue this intergenerational spirit, paving the way for future bioengineering innovations that could one day help solve some of the world’s most pressing problems.