For me, scientific research was like a drug. The more I immersed myself in it, the more my mind wanted it. Before I knew it, I was an addict. But, instead of experiencing the negative side effects that coincide with substance abuse, research has been a long-lasting positive journey of discovering who I am and how the world around me functions. Being a first-generation college student, the pressure for pursuing a career in medicine was high. Despite my passion for biology and science in general, I knew early on that becoming a medical doctor was never an option for me because I lacked the passion for that career path. Luckily, I was fortunate enough to stumble into thrilling research experiences that, over time, ignited to everlasting …show more content…
My research project used forward genetic approach to generate fusion-defective mutants. Although UV radiation has been used as a method for generating mutants in Chlamydomonas, we utilized random insertion using a linearized plasmid with an antibiotic cassette. The advantage of using this approach is that, unlike UV-generated mutagenesis, this method could allow for the use of polymerase chain reaction (PCR) techniques to find the insertion site and locate the gene, which when disturbed by the cassette, was responsible for the phenotype of interest. In my case, because I was interested in finding the genes responsible for gamete fusion, I was focused on finding mutants that could not mate.
There were many obstacles that I had to overcome while working on this project. To begin with, transforming Chlamydomonas using the glass-beads method was not efficient. To overcome that, multiple transformations were performed to accommodate for the low efficiency. However, later on, a collaboration effort with another lab was accomplished, improving the transformation efficiency of Chlamydomonas through electroporation. Moreover, because insertions were random, large populations of mutants that were generated either bore insertions in sequences, such as intergenic regions, that did not contribute significantly to the function of any gene, or generated undesirable
Science is a field I am particularly passionate about and am pursuing as a career. This is because I believe the profound knowledge and insights science offers can best equip me to serve others through a career in health care. I came to this conclusion after taking my first college level biology course. For the first time, I became aware of the unimaginable dept and complexity of the world and ignited a burning fire within me to understand it all. As I continued to take additional biology and chemistry courses, I discovered the thrill that comes with deciphering the governing laws of life. This understanding has taken on a greater, personal meaning as I have learned how to apply science to daily life and share its benefits. Moreover, working with various masters of this admirable field has encouraged me to apply my own skills and what I have learned in health care.
Initially, the DNA of interest needs to be isolated to provide a DNA segment of suitable size. Subsequently, a ligation procedure is used where the amplified fragment is inserted into a vector . The vector is linearised using restriction enzymes, and incubated with the fragment of interest under appropriate conditions with an enzyme called DNA ligase. Following ligation the vector with the insert of interest is transfected into cells. A number of alternative techniques are available, such as chemical sensitivation of cells, electroporation, optical injection and biolistics. Finally, the transfected cells are cultured. As the aforementioned procedures are of particularly low efficiency, there is a need to
Once I found out that science is second nature to me, I spent countless hours studying and researching how exactly to become a scientist. Now, I am carrying out the plans that I made from my research to make my dream come true. Even though I found myself struggling with some subjects, I worked even harder to make sure I have all the required knowledge for my journey.
I had been told by many that medicine was the hardest career pathway anyone could take and worse more, it was nearly impossible to get it into! But medicine was all I could see myself doing, I had no alternatives so I was determined to get in. Naturally, I found myself more inclined to the sciences. I read more than I was expected to, I worked harder than I was expected to and with tremendous faith, I challenged all the boundaries set around me.
Exploring various research opportunities on campus and summer internships have allowed me to shape what I want my future to look like. When the time approached to set my personal and professional goals, I made a conscientious decision to enter a field that would allow me to leave a positive impact on mankind, while adding to the current body of research. There is more that can be done by combining research and medicine, and additional steps I can take to enhance scientific advances. These convictions, coupled with my passion for medicine and science, were significant factors in my interest in becoming a physician-scientist, pursuing an MD-PhD. As a scientist, I see how creation and innovation can aid. As a future medical doctor, I see the need to treat, heal, and
In college, I was proficient in science courses especially when it came to analyzing data and coming to a conclusion. Therefore, my desire was to become a research scientist. While in school, I worked as the head veterinary technician at an animal hospital. During this time, I formed a respectable and valuable relationship with the doctor. Working for him was like getting paid for learning. He took every opportunity to explain and teach the details of a disease or diagnosis. I learned something new every day and I loved it. While treating the animals at the hospital was the main priority, forming relationships with the clients was also of vital importance. A favored responsibility of mine was client education. This gave me a chance to have direct human interaction by teaching clients how to care for their sick pet at home. Demonstrations included diabetes
The purpose of this experiment was to show the genetic transformation of E. coli bacteria with a plasmid that codes for Green Fluorescent Protein (GFP) and contains a gene regulatory system that confers ampicillin resistance. A plasmid is a genetic structure in a cell that can replicate independently of chromosomes. In this lab, the Green Fluorescent Protein, which is typically found in the bioluminescent jellyfish Aequorea Victoria, was cloned, purified, and moved from one organism to another with the use of pGlo plasmids. It was hypothesized that if bacteria that were transformed with +pGlo plasmids are given the gene for GFP, then transformed cell colonies
Purpose The purpose of this experiment is to demonstrate how genetic engineering works to manipulate the genetics to express certain traits. This can be seen with the insertion of the pGLO plasmid onto Escherichia coli. Introduction All of the things that is required to make a particular organism function properly, is called the genome. Eukaryotes have a genome that is composed of chromosomes, plasmids, and other specific organelles, such as mitochondria, chloroplasts, etc.
I’ve learnt that being a doctor is about so much more than administering drugs. At its peak, being a doctor is about communication and compassion. I love working with people and I love science, and the more exposure I get to medicine the more confident I feel that despite its hurdles and sacrifices, there is no other career that would grant me as much fulfilment as
One of the most imperative functions in maintaining the development of evolution is the frequency of genetic transformation: the injection of foreign DNA into another organism’s DNA. This term is defined by the actions of a vector, but more specifically by the actions of plasmids and phages. However, in this experiment we are primarily focused on the effect of the pGLO plasmid transformation of GFP on the E. coli bacteria by introducing a second chromosome or a plethora of cloned plasmids. (Bassiri 2011)
Genetic transformation occurs when genes are inserted into another gene to change the organism’s trait (Weedman2016). In this experiment, we proceeded to transform the E. coli bacteria with a gene that contained green fluorescent protein. The green fluorescent protein is used in experiments because it beams a green color under a UV light (Chalfie2008). Typically, it is used to mark the expression of genes, which is why it serves as the symbol for all gene expressions (Tsien1998). In the experiment, we will be using pGLO as the organisms that will transmit the disease, otherwise known as a vector. The pGLO in the experiment
I chose to major in Pre-Professional Health Sciences because I want to become a medical scientist, conducting my own research. The reason behind this is not as straightforward as a simple desire for a medical career. Instead, my Dad’s passion and entrepreneurial attitude acted as a catalyst, triggering my longing to make my own medical breakthroughs. I was the kid with antiques and jewelry strewn all over the house because my Dad enjoyed buying collectibles to resell online. He eventually decided to make this hobby into a job because his adoration for hearing the stories associated with each item was worth more than any amount of money. In fact, my Dad’s ingenuity in starting his own company sparked my creativity and kindled the fire of my
19. Chlamydomonas was used as the model organism for the study of _____. A. chloroplast inheritance B. mitochondrial inheritance C. genomic imprinting D. methylation of
Plasmids are small double stranded circular non chromosomal DNA molecules containing their own origin of replication. Hence, they are capable of replication independent of the chromosomal DNA in bacteria. Plasmids present in one or more copies per cell, can carry extra chromosomal DNA from one cell to another cell and serve as tools to clone and manipulate genes. Plasmids used exclusively for this purpose are known as vectors. The genes of interest can be inserted into these vector plasmids creating a recombinant plasmid. Recombinant plasmids can play a significant role in gene therapy, DNA vaccination, and drug delivery [Rapley, 2000].
Bacterial transformation is the process of moving genes from a living thing to another with the help of a plasmid.The plasmid is able to help replicate the chromosomes by themselves; laboratories use these to aid in gene multiplication. Bacterial transformation is relevant in everyday lives due to the fact that almost all plasmids carry a bacterial origin of replication and an antibiotic resistance gene(“Addgene: Protocol - How to Do a Bacterial