A device is taking shape in strojLAB that students hope will succeed in a prestigious biotechnology competition

Pravoslav Žilka, a student at the Faculty of Mechanical Engineering of Brno University of Technology (BUT/VUT), is part of the Mendel Brno team 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 in the university workshop strojLAB to grow the fast-growing plant duckweed. The goal is to offer farmers an affordable, local source of protein that could replace soy.

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

The aim is to solve a real-world problem using synthetic biology. But such a solution usually can’t be done without technical know-how, which is why the team is made up of both biologists and engineers.

How did you put together a team of 21 students from BUT and Masaryk University?

Most people joined through a recruitment campaign. Some, including me, heard 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, we were just three biologists. In September we started assembling a broader team, the first work began in November, and in January we started building the cultivator.

Why iGEM specifically?

Because it’s the most prestigious biotechnology competition in the world. Winning it is extremely difficult, but even partial awards—say for hardware or software—carry great weight. Success at iGEM validates the capabilities of the entire team and earns respect in the professional community.

What is your project?

We want to replace soy, because up to 80% of total production is used to feed livestock. We’re developing a cultivation unit into which a farmer feeds slurry (liquid manure). Duckweed then grows in the unit thanks to that slurry. The plant is harvested automatically and provides a local, protein-rich feed source that’s also cheaper. For duckweed to grow fast enough in this unit, it needs to be genetically modified—our colleagues at Masaryk University are taking care of that.

Soy? No thanks! We’d rather have the “duckweed beast.”

Today, soy dominates as the main protein source farmers use to feed their animals. Its high protein content is attractive—but it often means a high price farmers must pay, which then shows up in the prices of dairy products. And that’s not all! Soy also carries a huge environmental cost we all pay—and will keep paying—for a long time: millions of hectares of destroyed natural ecosystems and vast amounts of greenhouse gases. And yet there’s a risk that within a few decades there simply won’t be enough for everyone.

Excerpt from the project presentation on Donio.cz

What is your role?

Together with Andrej Žabka from FME and FIT graduate Martin Pavell, we’re 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, which is one of the strojLAB workshops. That’s where we spend most of our time. Many thanks go to representatives of the Institute of Machine Design (Ústav konstruování) Martin Malý and Vojtěch Florián, who created the facilities for us in the workshop.

What has being on the team given you?

I’ve learned to design and test new concepts, improved at fundraising, and at presenting projects to the public. You also quickly get a sense of what’s feasible and what isn’t.

What is the competition like?

Teams from all over the world will come to Paris—say from Stanford or Oxford—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 a meaningful solution is crucial. Validation with people from practice and adjusting the project based on their feedback is highly valued. And of course presentation plays a big role—especially the written one, because that’s what the judges have at hand.

On Donio you’re running the Mendel 2.0 crowdfunding campaign. What will you use the money for?

Primarily for the registration fee, laboratory facilities, and materials—for example those we used to build the cultivator. Supporters have just a few days left to back us.

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

The most helpful thing is to talk to someone from the field—even a complete stranger. In Brno, active and enterprising people often gather around JIC—there’s a good chance you’ll run into similar projects there.