Avaste ye! There are sequences, ahead! Going into the program, I would say that I was looking forward to the most was having to work with all the sequences. I had done a bit of PCR while I was at community college, but I never had the opportunity of analyzing, trimming, and comparing the sequences to those already uploaded to genetic databases. In fact, those extra few steps are what really what elevates PCR amplification of a gene into DNA bar-coding. What’s great about this opportunity is that I get to use real samples that have been collected in the field. Being that these are samples from an understudied phylum, there is also a higher chance that I may recognize a sequence that has yet to be catalogued (i.e., discover a new species). So far, my lab partner and I have done just that!
Being giving so much autonomy I felt a lot of gratitude when I can discover a new species, but I also feel a lot (maybe a little less) gratitude just getting to where I can compare, or BLAST, the sequences that I PCR amplified. There are a lot of steps to get to that point (and so many ways it can go wrong to get there) but with enough practice you can start worrying less about mistakes you may have made along the way. Even then, there are still sequences that come out poor for whatever reason or, comically, you may have a great sequence of your sample’s dinner! Yes, you may have just PCR amplified what had been lurking in that specimen’s digestive tract! Frustrating but always funny to talk about in retrospect. It’s been great seeing how far we’ve come by the end of week 5, but there is still a lot of work to do! Namely, starting to get ready for the poster! The better part of this week has been consumed by mostly trimming, troubleshooting, and “BLAST-ing” sequences. There was, however, some small moments along the way adding on to the experience of doing research at this unique institution.
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AuthorI’m a first-generation college student. I like enjoying the outdoors and finding new hiking trails. Archives
August 2019
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