October 2, 2020
By: Alexus Bunnam and Taylor Grossen
Hello again! We are glad to finally be back in lab after quarantine and summer break. Coming back to school has been a difficult transition. It’s been hard to juggle online classes and assignments with the current circumstances. Although, with the help of the RISEbio professors, the transition back has been less stressful. Prior to quarantine we were together almost everyday. We lived across from each other, we did homework, and had labs together. It felt good to be back in lab with each other.
Just to recap, we designed primers for a PCR experiment, our PCR product was sequenced, and we have found that our primers successfully amplify PER1 within the green anoles’ hypothalamus. Since being back in lab, we retouched on basic lab techniques and reviewed our prior experiments. The first new protocol we performed upon being back was RNA isolation. In order to practice the protocol, we used liver tissue samples rather than the actual samples (brain tissue). The purpose of the RNA isolation is to separate the RNA from the given sample. Once isolated, the RNA concentration and purity were tested using the NanoDrop and a Gel electrophoresis was performed. Six brain samples were assigned to us with variation in sex and sample collection time. So far, three of the six brain samples were tested, and the concentration and purity levels were decent. A good concentration would reveal a number above 200 ng/µl and a good purity level reveals a number that is around 2.0. The first sample had a concentration of 249.6 ng/µl and a purity of 2.05 the second sample had a concentration of 298.8 ng/µl and a purity of 2.06, and the third sample had a concentration of 222.1 ng/µl and a purity of 2.07.
Continuing in lab, we will finish isolating the rest of brain samples and then perform a cDNA protocol. Along with being in lab, we have been created a working abstract that will eventually be used in our final presentation. Other future plans include making a diagram and creating a poster for our final presentation.
Even though COVID-19 has presented challenges we are finding ways adapt to the new normal. Despite competitive lab times and limits on how we learn, we plan to make the most out of this semester. In all, we are looking forward to discovering the final results of our experiment.
