Device is being developed at strojLAB that students hope will help them succeed in a prestigious biotechnology competition

Tomáš Žilka, a student at the Faculty of Mechanical Engineering at BUT, is part of the Mendel Brno team, which is preparing to represent the Czech Republic at the prestigious iGEM 2025 biotechnology competition in Paris. Together with his colleagues, he is building an autonomous cultivation unit for growing fast-growing duckweed in the university’s strojLAB workshop. The goal is to offer farmers an affordable, local source of protein that could replace soy.

Mr. Žilka, you are part of a student team from Brno that will compete at iGEM 2025. What is the competition about?

The idea is to solve a real-world problem using synthetic biology. However, such a solution usually requires technical knowledge as well, which is why the team includes both biologists and engineers.

How did you manage to form a team of 21 students from BUT and Masaryk University?

Most people joined through a recruitment campaign. Some of us, including myself, learned about the competition thanks to friends who were already on the team.

How long have you been preparing for the competition?

The decision to apply came in April 2024—back then, there were only three biologists. In September, we started putting together a broader team, the first work began in November, and in January we started building the cultivator.

Why iGEM in particular?

Because it’s the most prestigious biotechnology competition in the world. Winning it is extremely difficult, but even partial awards—for example, in hardware or software—carry great value. Success at iGEM means validation of the whole team’s abilities and respect within the scientific community.

What is your project about?

We want to replace soy because up to 80% of global production is used for livestock feed. We are developing a cultivation unit that farmers can feed with manure. Thanks to the manure, duckweed grows inside the unit. The plant is harvested automatically and provides a local, protein-rich, and cheaper feed source. To make duckweed grow fast enough in this system, it needs to be genetically modified—this part is handled by our colleagues from Masaryk University.

What is your role?

Together with Andrej Žabka from FME and Martin Pavell, a graduate of FIT, we are building the autonomous cultivation unit. Our goal is to grow duckweed as efficiently as possible, with minimal need for human supervision.

Where is the cultivator being built?

We’re building it in AssemblyLab, one of the strojLAB workshops. That’s where we spend most of our time. We owe great thanks to representatives of the Institute of Machine and Industrial Design, Martin Malý and Vojtěch Florián, who provided us with the workshop facilities.

What do you gain from being part of the team?

I’ve learned how to design and test new concepts, improved my skills in fundraising and public project presentation, and gained a clear idea of what’s feasible and what’s not.

How strong is the competition?

Teams from all over the world will come to Paris—from Stanford or Oxford, for example, as well as colleagues from Prague. We regularly meet at iGEM community events, which are more friendly than competitive. Each team tackles a completely different problem.

What is key to success in the competition?

Choosing a real problem and finding a meaningful solution. Validation with people from practice and adapting the project based on their feedback are highly valued. And, of course, presentation plays a major role—especially the written part, since that’s what the judges primarily see.

You have a crowdfunding campaign called Mendel 2.0 on Donio. What will the collected funds be used for?

Primarily for the entry fee, lab facilities, and material needs—for example, those we used to build the cultivator. Supporters still have a few days left to contribute.

What would you say to students who have an idea but don’t know where to start?

The best thing is to talk to someone from the field, even a complete stranger. In Brno, active and enterprising people often gather around JIC—that’s a great place to meet others with similar projects.

Source: FME BUT

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