12/11/2025
The Glynn Family Honors Program is excited to share the work of two of our students, Oliver Wardhana โ27 and Mckenna Douglas โ28, who, with of a team of five undergraduate researchers, presented an independent research project to a panel of international judges at the iGEM Grand Jamboree in Paris, France. Even more exciting, as parts of the inaugural iGEN@ND team, Oliver and Mckenna were awarded a Gold Medal for their achievement in target areas of entrepreneurship, mathematical modelling, and engineering.
Throughout summer and fall 2025, Oliver, Mckenna, and their team worked tirelessly on their project Fleur, an engineered probiotic that expresses the human GLP-1 at
subtherapeutic doses to assist with weight control and management.
iGEM, the international Genetically Engineered Machine, is an annual competition that
challenges undergraduates and high school students to apply synthetic biology
principles to modern challenges. The Grand Jamboree represented the pinnacle of Oliver, Mckenna, and their teamโs work, as they gained the opportunity to interact with synthetic biologists in assorted roles and fields.
โAs a competition but also a major networking event, it was incredible to see and hear how professionals in industry and academia formed their experiences within the synthetic biology field,โ says Oliver Wardhana โ27.
โThis experience expanded my knowledge of what synthetic biology is,โ says Mckenna Douglas โ28. โBefore the competition, I had a vague idea of what it was, but visiting different teams and seeing the variety in their work showed me how broad the applications can be. It was a very open event where I had the opportunity to explore exactly what I was interested in and speak with several industry representatives about what careers in synthetic biology entail.โ
The Glynn Family Program is immensely thankful for the opportunity to support Oliver and Mckenna in this invaluable research and professional development experience. In many ways, their time with iGEM has represented the key goals of the Glynn experience, including interdisciplinary collaboration and engagement with the international scholarly community.