May 1st, 2020
By: Abby Maruska and Zoe Rivard
Our goal for research, in the Brain and Behavior stream, is to determine how SCN3B gene is regulated in Anolis carolinensis lizards during the breeding and non-breeding seasons. Since COVID-19 has struck, both Zoe and I, along with the rest of our research stream have been confined to our homes, making it difficult to continue research on chosen gene. Instead we have been conducting Zoom meetings online and have been trying to learn more about the research we would be conducting in lab.
One of the tasks we would have been doing in our research lab, if not for COVID-19, was an RNA isolation. This process is where we take a tissue sample from our lizard and remove everything expect for RNA. Since we could not physically perform this experiment, our task was to make a protocol of what we will be doing once back in lab. There was a video for reference, along with a complex and detailed protocol to help us write our own. Completing the RNA isolation protocol allowed us to get comfortable with the process and gave us more knowledge of what we will be doing in lab, post-quarantine.
Trying to learn completely online due to the pandemic comes with a number of daily challenges and constant distractions from being in the comfort of our homes. One of the biggest challenges comes from being a biology major, most of our classes have a required lab with them but with everything being online we don’t get that hands-on experience provided in lab. Our professors have been working hard to switch their classes to online. They have also been very accommodating to the circumstances and understand the difficulty of learning complex topics from our couch, which makes it a little less stressful for us students. Abby and I have both found that taking breaks and focusing on something other than school for a while has been very beneficial to us both.
COVID-19 may have put a pause on our research we were conducting and changed the way we are learning, but that has not stopped us from continuing to learn more about our gene outside of lab, and finishing up our first year in college. Creating the RNA protocol this past week was a step in our research process to discovering more about our gene while practicing social distancing and staying safe. Our future plans include hopefully getting back into lab next semester but for now, continuing as much research as we can online and finishing the year strong after all the adjustments to moving online.
