Monthly Archives: December 2013

Already the end?

Where has the time gone? It feels like yesterday that I was awkwardly digging through the soil, trying to find a phage. But literally just yesterday I basically completed the lab – I finally got my picture of the gel! (I essentially know what the DNA of my phage looks like!) I had the opportunity to tell a few of my friends what I have been doing in this lab, and they were amazed. They thought it was incredible that I had the opportunity to do all of these advanced laboratory procedures. And looking back, it has been crazy! In the beginning I did not even know what a microcentrifuge tube was. And I cannot wait for next semester when we spend time in the library researching and further understanding everything we learned in the lab.

Pizooky!

So today, I was able to name/archive my phage. Because discovering that I had a phage made me as happy as eating a pizookie, I named it after the best dessert in the world. 

Bittersweet

Today I finished my restriction digest. It was kind of stressful in the since that sometimes when pipetting .69 micro litters, its hard to tell if anything is actually being pipetted! (And not to mention the entertaining frenzy of everyone on that same step fighting for each of the enzymes and their perspective buffers!) But now that thats all done, i’m moving onto the final steps including the electrophoresis. This part of the lab has been so cool because i’ve gotten to work first hand with some unbelievable equipment for any undergraduate, especially for a freshman! (Heck, I even got to troubleshoot the photo spectrometer!) So I really am sad to see this experience go, but next semester is where we get to actually dive into our results and that too is exciting.

I remember when I first applied to this program. I was expecting to see some pretty cool stuff under a microscope and actually get some biology lab experience. But it really has turned out to be so much more. It still blows my mind with all the stuff that we’ve been able to do this semester! I want to believe Dr. Gibbon when he says that next semester is super cool, but I feel like comparing it to this semester is going to be pretty tough!

 

Oh, and I found a really really interesting study for my last blog post! So be on the lookout.

Comment on Robots=Humans? by Kirby

I agree, there is a very fine line between allowing the ease of technology to provide a relief from tedious work and using said technology as a crutch for incompetent individuals. I believe this branch of science still recquires a lot of research and work but I look forward to seeing more of this robotic technology in the future

Sad Day

So on Monday I was able to check the concentration of my DNA using the spectrophotometer. The concentration of my DNA was surprisingly low. I don’t know what the next step will be, I think I’ll be making a gel, but today I will be making a grid because I was not able to make a grid last time as it was breaking apart. Let’s hope I can find a phage today.

Oxytocin can Help Autistic Children

I read the article at http://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2013/12/131202162115.htm and found it very interesting. It is about how a nasal spray of oxytocin can help autistic children. I really liked this article because my best friend’s little brother is autistic, so I am always interested in new treatments for these sweet kids.

Long time no post

Hey everyone!

Our first semester is coming to an end and unfortunately, I won’t be with you guys next semester! I switched my major to biomedical engineering a couple weeks ago and turns out that biology isn’t a part of the degree plan for BIOmedical engineering. Hmm…Weird. But, it is what it is!

But on a more exciting note–I am SO pumped about our EM phage photos! I literally squealed when I saw mine.  I was just a litttttle too excited. All the more reason I switched into biomedical engineering! The technology is just so fascinating.

On Monday, I plated a spot test for my ten 10-fold dilutions of my newly purified lysate. When I was spotting the 10 microliter drops of lysate dilutions, the drops didn’t form a circle/drop. The top agar seemed to be solidified (I waited about 7 minutes and doubled checked to make sure it wasn’t runny or moving). Either way, the drops spread out and made odd shapes, only to be absorbed by the TA within seconds.

My concern is that the drops ran together and will affect the titer calculation.. Hopefully this won’t be a huge problem since we only really look at the lower concentrations for calculations. Fingers crossed!

A day in the life…

Well not every day in research is worth bragging about.. yesterday was one of those days where not much got done and there wasn’t too much anyone could do about it. Yesterday I learned how to operate the spectrophotometer. While this is an amazing piece of equipment that at the end of the day did its job, it goes to show that sometimes things just don’t go as you planned. But! I did get my concentration for the DNA sample. I’m not sure if mine was really that concentrated, or if there is some contaminant DNA hiding somewhere in there.. but! I’ll be ready to calculate and perform my restriction digest on Wednesday!

Why I Suck at Blogging

I’ve never been the type to openly share my emotions and frustrations. And this semester has been frustrating. However, it has also been extremely rewarding.

After adopting Walker’s phage, I experienced several problems. The first week, I accidentally used the wrong TA. After correcting my mistake, I went through several rounds of purification. My phage had two morphologies- large plaques with halos and small plaques without halos. I went through five rounds of purification to make sure I had one phage. I then began to calculate my titer, and experienced more problems. Once my phage did not lyse at all, and there was contamination on another plate. After making my ten plates, only four of them webbed; the others barely lysed. Luckily I had enough lysate to continue with the procedure. I made my EM grid, and got to look at my phage. After spending fifteen minutes trying to find my phage, the one grid that had it contained a broken film. The picture was too fuzzy to retain an image.

While these events have frustrated me to no end, I have also realized how much I love being in the lab. When I have a bad day, I go and check on my phage. I do not like being vocal about my frustrations because I am determined to overcome them and persevere. I also am not bothered by the failure I have experienced. In my opinion, research is not a pass or fail subject. I am encouraged by the passion I am developing, and I am determined to persevere.