This summer, a research lab at Bath University obligingly allowed me to come and do a summer placement with them. Furthermore, the Biochemical Society improved my situation even more when they agreed to grant me funding. I was so overwhelmed by all of these gifts that were being bestowed upon me, that I was a little anxious about starting the placement. I have to admit that I was scared the Biochemical Society had made a mistake. I've never worked in a real research lab before, especially not on my own! Wouldn't I be completely inept? Aren't they worried that I'll blow up the lab by mistake?? That I'll destroy years' worth of research???
However, by the second day I was already heading straight to the lab in the mornings and carrying out my very own PCR reactions. In addition, I was signed up (on my first day!) to attend a Structural Biology Conference at Reading University in July!
I have another confession to make... I apologise to all you science research enthusiasts out there, but I have always imagined that working in research would be a very boring job... I am beginning to realise that I may have been wrong. Admittedly, it can get tedious and sometimes a little slow and repetitive. But then most jobs can be like that at times and not many people can say that they are working on ground-breaking research and may have even found a possible cure for a deadly disease. The important thing to remember during the periods of tedium, is that what I am doing matters!
So, more about my placement. The lab I am working in is researching neuroscience, specifically the molecular mechanisms of memory. The protein we are working on is called KIBRA, which is a scaffold protein and very important for memory. KIBRA is linked to Alzheimer's disease, but unfortunately not much is known about how the protein functions. Consequently, the research being done in my placement lab is to determine the structure and function of the KIBRA protein, thus helping to understand how memory is regulated.
I will be writing regular updates (probably once a week) on how I'm getting on and to tell you what work I have been doing. So if you're interested, please subscribe! Thanks =]
However, by the second day I was already heading straight to the lab in the mornings and carrying out my very own PCR reactions. In addition, I was signed up (on my first day!) to attend a Structural Biology Conference at Reading University in July!
I have another confession to make... I apologise to all you science research enthusiasts out there, but I have always imagined that working in research would be a very boring job... I am beginning to realise that I may have been wrong. Admittedly, it can get tedious and sometimes a little slow and repetitive. But then most jobs can be like that at times and not many people can say that they are working on ground-breaking research and may have even found a possible cure for a deadly disease. The important thing to remember during the periods of tedium, is that what I am doing matters!
So, more about my placement. The lab I am working in is researching neuroscience, specifically the molecular mechanisms of memory. The protein we are working on is called KIBRA, which is a scaffold protein and very important for memory. KIBRA is linked to Alzheimer's disease, but unfortunately not much is known about how the protein functions. Consequently, the research being done in my placement lab is to determine the structure and function of the KIBRA protein, thus helping to understand how memory is regulated.
I will be writing regular updates (probably once a week) on how I'm getting on and to tell you what work I have been doing. So if you're interested, please subscribe! Thanks =]
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