Getting techie with it

In order to succesfully execute research experiments, one must fully “get” how lab instruments are used. This is, to a certain extent, why some of us spend a large scope of our first term doing research learning basic lab techniques (thank God that phase is long gone now). I had my fair fun making gels for protein runs (electrophoresis), and am now experiencing the more technical side of my research. Like I mentioned in my previous post, I’ve been working with circular dichroism, and should soon be using SELCON3, which is a FORTRAN ran program for CD spectra analysis. In a nutshell, I can get a good estimate of the structural conformation of those proteins analyzed. Some alpha helix here, some beta sheet there…random coil anyone?
If the structure of my protein mostly random coil, will the random coil composition change to a large extent once it interacts with another protein? These things, SELCON3 can tell me.

I think one of the most difficult things I’ve had to work on is getting the actual concentrations of my protein solutions right. We originally went for a 4% microgram/microliter concentration, but noticed by our spectra analysis that we simply needed a higher concentration. So now we’re going for 16%.

Might sound simple, but these calculations require a precise calibration curve of those proteins tested, which calls for spectrophotometric analyses of samples under a range of concentrations. In short, different concentrations absorb different (UV rays that is), and if you’re good with the pipette, you have yourself a very straight calibration curve, with a slope that approximates the epsilon value, an a correlation coefficient of 1, or 0.9999…..

Can’t argue, anything is better than making SDS gels.

I recently had the opportunity to visit 3 blogs. I was surprised to find out one of the students was also working with a proteins (specifically FAP1 yeast protein). His group is also interested in protein structure studies, and they’re but a few lab rooms away.
Another student is working with syntheses of quiral alcohols for neurodegenerative studies. I’m quite ignorant in the field, so I’m pretty excited to know why the interest in these particular alcohols over other alcohols in general.
Last, a student that is using the mortality of shrimp and tropical plant extracts from Puerto Rico to study antitumor properties from these plants. I guess mice needed a small break
I wonder if tropical Puerto Rican plants have ever shown anti tumor properties previously? Could this be the reason why this group has develop an interest in those potential properties tropical plants possibly share? What could tropical plants share in common that other plants don’t, that has scientists in a search for antitumor properties among these? Hopefully I understood the scope of their research project.

It’s been quite an adventure

Bis nachste woche !
Ich habe manchmal Hausaufgabe