https://video.igem.org/videos/watch/b61e0c9b-88b9-4b3e-8a71-2ba65fa2e8d9 Title: TermiTox: Engineered Yeast for Targeted Biocontrol of Termites in Wooden Heritage Conservation Description: Historic timber structures across China—palaces, temples, and old residences—are threatened by termites which cause hidden damage that undermines their preservation. Current control relies on chemical pesticides, which persist and harm non-target organisms. In our iGEM project, we engineered Saccharomyces cerevisiae as a bait-based delivery chassis; termites acquire it from a contained station and spread it via trophallaxis. Guided by termite life history—wood digestion relies on the termite and its gut protists—we designed two complementary modules: a pH-sensitive H311A LLO variant that targets gut protists, and an RNAi module with two single-hairpin constructs targeting RsEG (cellulase) and Hexamerin-1 (caste regulation). A glucanase-assisted release module aids payload escape. Biosafety is enforced by hypoxia- and acetate-responsive promoters, sequence specificity, and physical containment. Overall, TermiTox aims to provide targeted, modular, and environmentally responsible termite control for wooden heritage and forest ecosystems. Wiki | Official Page Thu, 29 Oct 2026 21:22:04 GMT https://validator.w3.org/feed/docs/rss2.html PeerTube - https://video.igem.org https://video.igem.org/client/assets/images/icons/icon-1500x1500.png https://video.igem.org/videos/watch/b61e0c9b-88b9-4b3e-8a71-2ba65fa2e8d9 All rights reserved, unless otherwise specified in the terms specified at https://video.igem.org/about and potential licenses granted by each content's rightholder.