Imperial students win Gold Medal at 2025 iGEM Grand Jamboree

A group of Life Sciences undergraduates developed a yeast strain and optimisation tool for sustainable cultivated-meat production at iGEM 2025.

A team of six Imperial undergraduates returned from the 2025 iGEM Grand Jamboree in Paris with a Gold Medal for their project Mannoless. The team engineered a yeast strain and developed a no-code optimisation platform to improve the efficiency and sustainability of cultivated-meat production.

iGEM

The International Genetically Engineered Machine (iGEM) competition brings together hundreds of university teams worldwide to design solutions to real-world challenges using synthetic biology. Imperial sent six students from the Departments of Life Sciences and Bioengineering, supervised by Dr Rodrigo Ledesma-Amaro.

Project highlights

"Our primary aim was to make production more sustainable and cost-effective. iGEM showed us the value and enjoyment of taking a project from idea to validation independently, which will guide the kind of work we pursue in the future." Szonja Skenderovic BSc Biochemistry Undergraduate

Mannoless was designed to reduce unwanted by-products during fermentation, enabling higher-yield, animal-free production of essential growth factors. The team’s no-code Bayesian optimisation tool allows biologists to fine-tune metabolic pathways, speeding up experimental design.

Szonja Skenderovic, BSc Biochemistry undergraduate, said: ‘Our primary aim was to make production more sustainable and cost-effective. iGEM showed us the value and enjoyment of taking a project from idea to validation independently, which will guide the kind of work we pursue in the future.’

Supervisor Dr Rodrigo Ledesma-Amaro added: ‘Our team has contributed towards the ambitious goal of making sustainable and healthy foods, by using synthetic biology to decrease the production costs of cultivated meat.’

iGEM experience

During the four-day event, the team showcased their project, gave a live stage talk on bridging research and industry, and attended sessions with global leaders in synthetic biology.

While the students will not continue engineering the strain next summer, they are collaborating with a startup and their supervisor to ensure the project progresses toward real-world application.

The team thanked the Department of Life Sciences for supporting their participation and enabling them to build international connections.