In September 2023, the iGEM club from Ulink held a special lecture, which was about the microbes in cats and dogs. Let's take a look at what they said about it. 

In order to let students know more about microorganisms, we held a lecture on "Microorganisms in Cats and Dogs" at Ulink for students who are interested in microorganisms. To make students feel more involved, we set a new record in Ulink and were specially allowed to bring small animals into the school. Before the speech, we invited several special guests to the scene, namely two kittens, a big cat and a hamster. Every student who enters the venue can experience the special service we provide - cat petting. Our unique attempts have also given us a good response. During the speech, we mainly mentioned eight types of microorganisms in cats and five types of microorganisms in dogs. They are cat claw, toxoplasmosis, salmonellosis, strep throat, hookworm, cat moss, cryptosporidiosis, rabies, roundworms, fleas, canine demodicosis, eyeworm, and kala-azar. In addition, we also expanded on several methods to prevent infectious diseases. There are four main methods, namely regular disinfection of the environment, ensuring the hygiene of water and food sources, washing hands frequently, and keeping clean at all times. Moreover, in order to better attract the students' attention, we also conducted a question-answering and prize-winning session during the speech.

Fortunately, this event was a success, and we received a lot of good responses, and the students also actively participated. Especially some students who have small animals at home said they have learned a lot of useful knowledge and will try to put it into practice, which is exactly in line with our purpose.