A group of students from Lambert High School in suburban Atlanta drew international attention at the iGEM synthetic biology competition in Paris by building CRISPR-based approaches to both detect and treat Lyme disease. The team, made up of students including Sean Lee and captain Avani Karthik, worked in a college-level lab to design guide RNAs and exploit CRISPR proteins’ collateral-cleavage activity to solve two persistent problems: slow diagnosis and limited therapeutic options.
For diagnosis, the students focused on a protein produced during infection. Using a simulated blood-serum model, they designed CRISPR guides to recognize DNA sequences linked to that protein. The system uses collateral cleavage to remove background nucleic acid and reveal the target signal, producing a simple, strip-style readout similar to COVID or pregnancy tests. In their experiments the approach flagged infection as early as two days after exposure, compared with the roughly two-week window common to many existing tests.
On the therapeutic side, the team proposed a CRISPR-based strategy to attack Borrelia, the bacteria that cause Lyme. To refine targeting and delivery, they developed software to model optimal CRISPR design and logistics and planned lipid nanoparticles as a delivery vehicle. Their teacher, Kate Sharer, called the work ‘‘high risk, high reward’’ and said students often introduced concepts she had not seen before. The team sought feedback from university researchers and other stakeholders, acknowledging the complexity and safety challenges ahead.
Lambert’s program benefits from substantial resources: a well‑equipped lab, a selective process for the iGEM roster (roughly 100 applicants for about 10 spots), and students who commit long hours. The roster is majority Asian-American and includes many children of immigrants. The local effort traces back to Janet Standeven, who helped introduce synthetic biology into Georgia high schools and secured federal support to scale the initiative. That funding was later rescinded by the Trump administration amid disputes over whether it related to diversity, equity and inclusion, and a court temporarily restored the money; the program’s future beyond 2026 remains unclear.
At iGEM more than 400 teams presented projects ranging from enzymes to combat indoor mold to crops engineered for Mars and eye drops aimed at cataracts. Hundreds of high school teams participated, yet the distribution was uneven: about 14 U.S. high school teams compared with roughly 120 from Asia. Drew Endy, a Stanford professor and iGEM cofounder, warned that while competitions like iGEM cultivate talent, the United States risks losing ground as other nations, notably China, make synthetic biology a strategic priority.
Lambert’s entry earned recognition in Paris. Although the grand prize went to Great Bay from Shenzhen, China, Lambert won the best software tool award and finished among the top ten high-school projects — the only American high school in that group alongside teams from South Korea, Taiwan and China. Team members described a strong sense of purpose: Claire Lee said the project could affect millions if it advanced, and Karthik admitted competitive drive helped push the team through long nights of lab work, coding and presentations.
Scientists at iGEM and elsewhere noted the diagnostic approach could be broadly useful for detecting markers in blood, but they emphasized that far more validation, safety testing and development would be required before any clinical application. The Lambert project illustrates how hands-on synthetic biology in high schools can spark ambitious innovations, while also highlighting broader questions about how the country cultivates and funds future scientific talent as global competition intensifies.