Thread by @biochem_bri

After a jam-packed 2 days at #SciOut18🌪(thx @ASBMB & @rockedu_!) it was time to reflect! 🤔 Reflection is so important, but it can be hard to find ⏰ to really just think! 💭 Some of my thoughts 👉 instagram.com/p/BokNO_NhihF/
#365DaysOfScience #biochemistry #scicomm #sciout #science

What’s inside? 🧐 It’s FORMAMIDE! 🤗 Formally removing RNA’s form with formamide! 🤓 FORMAMIDE in loading buffer breaks up & replaces the bonds between bases holding RNA's shape together 👇
instagram.com/p/BomwR32B4MX/
#365DaysOfScience #biochemistry #scicomm #lifeinthelab #science

Bring on the heat! 🔥 To help denaturants get to the huddling hydrophobic bases, we add heat ♨️ 👉 gives molecules more energy so they can “pull apart” more easily ⏩ easier access 👍 More 👇
instagram.com/p/Boo2yazBDDi/
#365DaysOfScience #biochemistry #scicomm #lifeinthelab #science

I (will hopefully) get by w/a lot of help from my friends! Tomorrow I have to give my 1st in-house seminar. 2 of my friends, @litalchart & @Tzvia_Pinkhasov came to the rescue to help me prepare! (But I'm now super exhausted) instagram.com/p/Bor82lcB9yf/…
#365DaysOfScience #phdchat

I did it! 😅 I think it went ok? 🤷‍♀️ No matter what, feels so great to have it over w/& FINALLY be able to catch my breath a little 😌 I decided to celebrate by taking pm off to work on #womeninSTEM Wikipedia editing! 🎊 instagram.com/p/BoubbSJBQt2/
#365DaysOfScience #phdchat #scicomm

Urea-PAGE gels, made to order!👩‍🍳 💁‍♀️ Instead of making from scratch, we “cheat” & mix premade solutions (CONCENTRATE, BUFFER, & DILUENT) 🤓 & we're not just being lazy 😜 Why & what's inside👇
instagram.com/p/BoxGC89BjHH/ #365DaysOfScience #biochemistry #scicomm #lifeinthelab #science

Got my absentee ballot in the mail today 📬 so I can cast my vote ✅ & with these casters I can cast (pour) my urea-PAGE gel! 🤓 Learn how👇
instagram.com/p/BozwjdCBaVc/
#365DaysOfScience #biochemistry #scicomm #lifeinthelab #science

A 1-well gel?! 🤨 *Comb* off it! 🙃 1st time I 👀 a lab mate had made 1 of these “preparative” urea-PAGE gels to purify IN-VITRO TRANSCRIBED RNA, I thought he’d forgotten to add the comb! He hadn't 👇
instagram.com/p/Bo2Pgh9B61O/
#365DaysOfScience #biochemistry #scicomm #lifeinthelab

Where’s the RNA? 🕵️‍♀️ We have several options to find it in our gel including
🔹 post-staining
🔺 pre-labeling
🔸 label & stain-free (UV shadowing)

We’ll 💬 each individually but here's quick overview👇
instagram.com/p/Bo4N1EmBO3L/
#365DaysOfScience #biochemistry #scicomm #lifeinthelab

I’ve spent the morning *at the links* but I haven’t been golfing! 🏌️‍♀️ Instead I’ve been going through my past #365DaysOfScience posts & creating a spreadsheet w/their topic & links to their detailed Instagram posts 💻: bit.ly/2OllAB0

#biochemistry #scicomm #science

Go for gold! 🏆 SYBR gold's 1 of most sensitive methods of visualizing RNA 👍 & it’s (practically) ONLY fluorescent when bound to nucleic acids (RNA or DNA) 👉 so you don’t have to worry about destaining 👍 More 👉
instagram.com/p/Bo97tbVhC4Q/
#365DaysOfScience #biochemistry #scicomm

That was fun! 🤓 Today I gave a talk about STRUCTURAL BIOLOGY (& why it’s 🤩) to undergrads @SUNYOldWestbury 🤗

Here are some of my slides (just a few of which are in the pics 📸) … bit.ly/structuralbios…
#365DaysOfScience #biochemistry #scicomm #lifeinthelab #science

Students can be the best teachers - Yesterday someone asked a great Q - where does structure come from?

So I’ve updated my slides bit.ly/structuralbios… …

Still working on them but had a busy day instagram.com/p/BpDSuz1BdmQ/
#365DaysOfScience #biochemistry #scicomm #lifeinthelab

How do some people take such neat notes? 🤷‍♀️I’m so focused on not missing anything! 😬 And speaking of focusing, x-rays don’t like to focus… 😒 So why do we use them to look at proteins? 👉
instagram.com/p/BpFoqNqhwKD/
#365DaysOfScience #biochemistry #scicomm #lifeinthelab #science

I learn best by teaching, 👩‍🏫 so as I’m taking this x-ray #crystallography course, you’re probably going to learn way more about crystallography than you ever wanted to know 🤯- but 🤞 you’ll at least find it somewhat interesting 🤞#365DaysOfScience #biochemistry #scicomm

Crystallographers like to *Bragg* about their ability to solve protein structures but in the beginning it’s the crystal doing all the work 💎 And it’s just adding waves together ∿ + ∿ 👉
instagram.com/p/BpK09keBS0E/
#365DaysOfScience #biochemistry #scicomm #lifeinthelab #science

Wave hello to our x-rays! 🙋‍♀️What is a wave? 🤷‍♀️ A wave is just something that changes in a regular and periodic manner over time or distance 👍

We use a few terms to describe them. More 👉
instagram.com/p/BpNY-MnhP4S/
#365DaysOfScience #biochemistry #scicomm #lifeinthelab #science

A crystallographer’s biggest problem: we can’t save phase 🤓 Wave hello to the PHASE PROBLEM 😒 More information on how we lose information about the waves we rely on in #crystallography 👉
instagram.com/p/BpQAAj-hwIs/
#365DaysOfScience #biochemistry #scicomm #lifeinthelab #science

Representing waves as COMPLEX NUMBERS actually makes doing calculations w/them much less complex! 🤨

You won’t need to understand it to follow upcoming posts 😅 but my explanation's in IG post 👉 bit.ly/2EHmzat
#365DaysOfScience #biochemistry #scicomm #crystallography

I hate to superimpose 🙃 but I have a wave love story to tell you! 😍 Waves like x-rays can overlap 👉 we call it WAVE SUPERPOSITION & it influences how the underlying waves appear 👉 bit.ly/2ON2Wm1
#365DaysOfScience #biochemistry #scicomm #lifeinthelab #science

Today I hosted my 1st train-the-trainers session for @CSHL_WISE/@CSHLLibrary #WomenInSTEM edit-a-thon! 🤗

Still working on polishing slides (been super busy w/crystallography course) but here's 🔗: bit.ly/wikipediaediti… & more info bit.ly/2PXF5MH
#365DaysOfScience

Do the wave! This is message x-ray beam passes along to atoms of proteins sitting in our crystal “stadium” & our job is to 👀 at sum of all their waves & figure out where each was sitting. More @ bit.ly/2JjDBtJ
#365DaysOfScience #biochemistry #scicomm #crystallography

It’s *normal* to get confused by vectors - so plz don’t get *cross* w/me when I try to connect the *dots* & make heads & tails of VECTOR MATH (1 of many things I’m having to get used to in #crystallography) 👉 bit.ly/2Av4yI6
#365DaysOfScience #biochemistry #scicomm

We can think of “slicing” crystals into families of evenly-spaced planes. Only when spacing is just right will reflected waves add together to give spots 👉 DIFFRACTION PATTERN 👉 learn more 👉 bit.ly/2D83sEJ
#365DaysOfScience #biochemistry #scicomm #crystallography

Imagine slicing crystal w/evenly-spaced planes to make equal-sized slabs. The thinner your slabs, the better you’ll be able to tell where things are inside. We describe planes w/MILLER INDICES 👉 bit.ly/2yFCfFx
#365DaysOfScience #biochemistry #scicomm #crystallography

If @jk_rowling ever writes a new book, I hope it includes reciprocal apparition! ⚡️ A spell that transports a crystal in REAL SPACE into corresponding diffraction pattern in RECIPROCAL SPACE 🤓 Harry Potter & the Fourier transform? MORE👉 bit.ly/2OfOUnO
#365DaysOfScience

Peer into an EWALD SPHERE & you’ll see diffraction spots appear! 🔮As a reciprocal lattice point intersects the sphere, it gives us info about what atoms are near! ⏰ to combine some concepts! 👉 bit.ly/2OerVt3
#365DaysOfScience #biochemistry #scicomm #crystallography

What’s it *actually* like to do a PROTEIN #CRYSTALLOGRAPHY experiment? Here’s an overview 👉 bit.ly/2qlzlRS

We’ll ✅ things off as we go along in more detail
#365DaysOfScience #biochemistry #scicomm #lifeinthelab #crystallographyisstillcool #phdchat #realtimechem

Our crystal’s acting as a calculator but it’s not showing it’s work! 😒 Step 1 in solving a protein structure w/#crystallography 👉 figuring out what “SOLVING” means 👉 bit.ly/2P3E21m

Then real 1st step GETTING PURE PROTEIN 👍
#365DaysOfScience #biochemistry #scicomm

When there's not enough water to cover it, protein can panic & clump together 👉 AGGREGATES👎 OR slowly, methodically join together ⏩ CRYSTALS! 🎉 Learn more 👉 bit.ly/2AKxX17
#365DaysOfScience #biochemistry #scicomm #lifeinthelab #science

Time to develop a crystallization gameplan! Sports coaches have play diagrams & crystallographers have CRYSTALLIZATION DIAGRAMS! It’s really hard to control our players (protein molecules), but we can try!
More 👉 bit.ly/2D0Mk2W
#365DaysOfScience #biochemistry #scicomm

It’s hard to hold an open bar for proteins 👉 they’re very picky about their CRYSTALLIZATION COCKTAILS! (chemical combo that’ll ⬇️ solubility *just enough* to give us nice crystals. Learn more 👉 bit.ly/2PF3TfH
#365DaysOfScience #biochemistry #scicomm #crystallography

Some proteins like their crystallization cocktails salted! 🍸 But others don’t! 😬

SALT is 1 of main types of PRECIPITANT we use in #crystallography but it can also act like an *anti-precipitant* 🤯 Why? 🤷‍♀️ 👇
bit.ly/2PEpwgf
#365DaysOfScience #biochemistry #scicomm

Have you seen my water? 🕵️‍♀️ It was here before I added salt… It's still there, just "in use"! We can explain it's "disappearance" with the concept of CHEMICAL ACTIVITY 🤗 Learn more 👉 bit.ly/2JPMITu
#365DaysOfScience #biochemistry #scicomm #crystallography #science

Not getting crystals? Is your SALT at fault? Keep an ION its STRENGTH! Learn more about how more ions makes for a foggier ionic atmosphere 👉
bit.ly/2SXWOWs
#365DaysOfScience #biochemistry #scicomm #lifeinthelab #science #chemistry #realtimechem

Why am I BEAMing? 😀 Today I went to @BrookhavenLab’s SYNCHROTRON! 🤗 (I know we’re not this far in our #crystallography 💬 but I want to show you guys how cool it is! 🤓 HOW A #SYNCHROTRON WORKS 👇
bit.ly/2z0JjwR
#365DaysOfScience #biochemistry #scicomm #physics

Some ppl get excited 4 World Series ⚾️ I get excited 4 HOFMEISTER SERIES! 🤓 When it comes to protein-precipitating power, it’s not always salt w/biggest effect on ionic strength that wins! 💪🏻 bit.ly/2PoeDzA
#365DaysOfScience #biochemistry #scicomm #lifeinthelab #science

At a pH of 8 will a protein's crystals be great? 😃 What about 10? What happens then? 🤔 The precipitating power of salts doesn’t just depend on the salt & the protein 👉 pH tries to take (or give) charge!⚡️👉
bit.ly/2FhSm1N
#365DaysOfScience #biochemistry #scicomm

At any given *moment*, I’m constant-ly thinking of DIELECTRICS! 🤓 Can ORGANIC SOLVENTS solve our crystallization conundrum? 🤔 Plz *permit* me to explain 👉 it’ll be *relative*ly brief… 👉 bit.ly/2DDtyzC
#365DaysOfScience #biochemistry #scicomm #lifeinthelab #science

Think I’m a geek? 🤓 You’ve got me PEGged! 😆 Couldn’t *exclude* Polyethylene glycol (PEG) in 💬 of precipitants! Crowd round 4 a 💬 of MACROMOLECULAR CROWDING & VOLUME EXCLUSION! 🤗👉bit.ly/2Dk8ldb
#365DaysOfScience #crystallography #biochemistry #scicomm #realtimechem

Cold outside ☃️ but it’s🤞always🤞 18°C in our #crystallography room! (which feels pretty cold after hrs…) Protein crystallization's sensitive to TEMPERATURE (T)! But T & solubility have complicated relationship 👉 bit.ly/2zSqoUt
#365DaysOfScience #biochemistry #scicomm

As crystallographers, it’s hard to limit SCREEN time! #Crystallography's a “game” taking place on crystallization diagram “field” & we screen to find best field 4 each protein & Unlike @amazon we have 2 entice them to come 2 us 😏 How 👉 bit.ly/2BaWuwy
#365DaysOfScience

Keep your 👁 on the crystal prize & OPTIMIZE. Find the best conditions for nice shape & size. But keep in mind beauty sometimes lies & diffraction power might not match what meets the 👀! 👉 bit.ly/2Q0MFJN
#365DaysOfScience #biochemistry #scicomm #crystallography

Are crystallographers cruel? 😢 We do take solutions away from their happy place (EQUILIBRIUM) 😈 BUT the crystals themselves are cannibalistic! 😱 👉bit.ly/2Q6kppd
#365DaysOfScience #biochemistry #scicomm #lifeinthelab #science #chemistry #realtimechem

What are you doing sitting over there? 🤷‍♀️Come hang out! 🙃 Oh how long I’ve waited to make that pun… 🤦‍♀️ VAPOR DIFFUSION #crystallography methods includes SITTING DROP & HANGING DROP techniques. 👇
bit.ly/2BfCIQB
#365DaysOfScience #biochemistry #scicomm #realtimechem

Don’t raise the roof (yet) - flip it over! 🙃 it’s time to set up a HANGING DROP CRYSTALLIZATION tray! 🤗 A look at how we do it in practice! 👉
bit.ly/2A5Sagn
#365DaysOfScience #biochemistry #scicomm #lifeinthelab #science #crystallography

Rationally ration resources w/a reliable robot! In addition to stamina 😓 our biggest limiting factor in #crystallography when trying to get crystals is PROTEIN! 😬 A 🤖 helps us set up tiny drops 👉 bit.ly/2R0hgEw
#365DaysOfScience #biochemistry #scicomm #realtimechem

Don’t miss the MENISCUS! And pay attention to SURFACE TENSION - it’s why our hanging drops hang & don’t drop! 🤓 Learn how it works 👉bit.ly/2AeB1B6
#365DaysOfScience #biochemistry #scicomm #lifeinthelab #science #chemistry #realtimechem #physics

Do me a solid? Help these liquid water molecules escape their molecular neighbors & EVAPORATE into a gas! 🤓 Learn more about water's attempt to escape 👉 bit.ly/2BrRhki
#365DaysOfScience #biochemistry #scicomm #science #chemistry #realtimechem #crystallography #sciart

Grab a seat it’s SITTING DROP story time! 🤗 Learn how we harness the power of evaporation 💪🏻 to grow protein crystals! 👉 bit.ly/2P1XxTg

#365DaysOfScience #biochemistry #scicomm #lifeinthelab #science #crystallography #chemistry #physics #realtimechem

When it comes to crystals, it’s quality over quantity 💎 BUT when it comes to controlling evaporation by VAPOR PRESSURE DEPRESSION, it’s QUANTITY over identity! Why? 👉 bit.ly/2P3pTN7
#365DaysOfScience #biochemistry #scicomm #realtimechem #crystallography #chemistry

When you DISSOLVE something how many things will you get? Depends on what you’re dissolving 👉 bit.ly/2TKaHbd
#365DaysOfScience #biochemistry #scicomm #realtimechem #crystallography #chemistry #lifeinthelab #science

Molality, molarity, molecular hilarity 🤓 the bumbling biochemist’s here to hopefully bring some clarity! 😅 👉 bit.ly/2r4RnrX

#365DaysOfScience #biochemistry #scicomm #realtimechem #crystallography #chemistry #lifeinthelab #science

Look to the MOLE FRACTION to see colligative properties in action! And look here 👉 bit.ly/2DRc1mO to learn how!

#365DaysOfScience #biochemistry #scicomm #realtimechem #crystallography #chemistry #lifeinthelab #science

Is there a flaw in Raoult’s law? 🤔 Before you scoff, did you apply Van’t Hoff? 🤨 👉 bit.ly/2TVAnSm
#365DaysOfScience #biochemistry #scicomm #realtimechem #crystallography #chemistry #lifeinthelab #science

Solution acting deviant? 😈 Let’s keep things real - your actual solution is NOT IDEAL! 🙄 Learn about deviations from Raoult's law 👉 bit.ly/2Sj1Lbi
#365DaysOfScience #biochemistry #scicomm #realtimechem #crystallography #chemistry #lifeinthelab #science

Feel like weight of world's on your shoulders? 😰 Try being a liquid that really wants to be a gas! 🤓 Thankfully, wi/enough heat, molecules can team up against weight of the world & BOIL! 👍 How? 👉 bit.ly/2KMpDRY
#365DaysOfScience #biochemistry #scicomm #realtimechem

To make sufficiently soggy spaghetti 🍝 atop 🏔, bring salt. Why not sugar? In addition to tase bud considerations (unless you’re Buddy the Elf) sugar has ⬇️ BOILING POINT ELEVATION power 👉 bit.ly/2Ruek3w
#365DaysOfScience #biochemistry #scicomm #realtimechem #chemistry

In the ANTIFREEZE dance you dance in super slow-mo 💃 but “never” freeze bc of the colligative property of FREEZING-POINT DEPRESSION & in the CRYOPROTECTANT candy challenge 🍬 NERDS™️ often win 🤓 👉
bit.ly/2U8XwRo
#365DaysOfScience #biochemistry #scicomm #realtimechem

My solutions aren’t just cool, they’re SUPERCOOL! 😎 And then they’re glass!🤯 👉 bit.ly/2AWNZUL
#365DaysOfScience #biochemistry #scicomm #realtimechem #crystallography #chemistry #lifeinthelab #science

Don’t get *shocked* by OSMOSIS! 🤯 It’s just an exclusive DIFFUSION 😎🤩 Learn more 👉 bit.ly/2AUgJNU
#365DaysOfScience #biochemistry #scicomm #realtimechem #crystallography #chemistry #lifeinthelab #science

OSMOTIC PRESSURE tells your solvent, “You can keep moving but STOP DIFFUSING!” 🖐 Learn more 👉 bit.ly/2UjNqwN
#365DaysOfScience #biochemistry #scicomm #realtimechem #crystallography #chemistry #lifeinthelab #science

Just call me Encyclopedia BRI-tannica! 📖 Helping answer Q: If water’s gonna flow, which way’s it gonna go?🤔 But lower your TONE if you’re reading this in a library…🤫 👉 bit.ly/2UjNqwN
#365DaysOfScience #biochemistry #scicomm #realtimechem #crystallography #chemistry

Don’t cut *me* off, but when performing DIALYSIS, it’s OK to cut off molecules! (as long as you choose ✅ molecular weight cut off (MWCO)…) ✂️👉bit.ly/2G7Id8B
#365DaysOfScience #biochemistry #scicomm #realtimechem #crystallography #chemistry #lifeinthelab #science

Running low on cloud storage? 😰 Check out electron-sharing plans! 😅 Molecules' size depends on ATOMS they’re made up of & how they form COVALENT BONDS Learn how 👉 bit.ly/2G8SYax
#365DaysOfScience #biochemistry #scicomm #realtimechem #chemistry #lifeinthelab #science

Do your poles pull to give you a pole? 🤔💈🤞Bringing some clarity to chemical POLARITY! 👉 bit.ly/2C0xatO
#365DaysOfScience #biochemistry #scicomm #realtimechem #chemistry #lifeinthelab #science

A NONPOLAR MOLECULE is like an Etch A Sketch 👉 picture potential’s already there, you just have to make it come out 🤩 INDUCED DIPOLES make the nonpolar polar 👉 bit.ly/2PviVAk
_
#365DaysOfScience #biochemistry #scicomm #realtimechem #chemistry #lifeinthelab #science

Sync to the cloud, the electron cloud! Poor signal? Make sure you’re close enough to data tower to feel the INTERMOLECULAR FORCES, have enough bandwidth, & haven’t used up all your storage space)! 👇
bit.ly/2C6oQIT
#365DaysOfScience #biochemistry #scicomm #realtimechem

Like *charges* repel⚡️ but LIKE DISSOLVES LIKE in terms of POLAR/NONPOLAR 🤔 These aren’t contradictory 👉 like dissolves like *because* like charges repel 👻 & opposite charges attract 😍… bit.ly/2SJrdGR
#365DaysOfScience #biochemistry #scicomm #realtimechem #chemistry

One of hardest parts of designing a 💊 isn't finding something that does what you want, it’s making it WATER-SOLUBLE so you can deliver it. 😬 DMSO to the rescue! 🙏 Or not…😰 bit.ly/2QLYfsP
#365DaysOfScience #biochemistry #scicomm #realtimechem #pharmacology #chemistry

Better be believin methanol & ethanol’s charges are uneven 🤨 *how* uneven? Take a moment to 👀 @ DIPOLE MOMENT & if it’s SOLVENT polarity u wanna solve, take an electrifying 👀 @ DIELECTRIC bit.ly/2QLYfsP
#365DaysOfScience #biochemistry #scicomm #realtimechem #chemistry

Multiply? ✖️ Divide? ➗ What goes on which side? 🤷‍♀️ Eliminate any doubt 👉 make sure your units cancel out! ✅ Though if you’re in 🇺🇸 you may sigh to find your units aren’t SI 😩 bit.ly/2Gidohj
#365DaysOfScience #biochemistry #scicomm #realtimechem #chemistry

Do you dig my sig figs? 😎 0 to “superhero”? 🤨 Seems pretty *significant* 🤷‍♀️ Go *figure*! 🤓 SIGNIFICANT FIGURES are digits (whole numbers) that actually tell us info that we KNOW 👉 bit.ly/2EyUXTP
#365DaysOfScience #biochemistry #scicomm #realtimechem #chemistry

“Precisely accurate” is NOT redundant Nor repetitive Nor redundant Nor repetitive. PRECISION's measure of CONFIDENCE in measurement whereas ACCURACY's measure of how close measurement is to TRUE value bit.ly/2R2iJgS
#365DaysOfScience #biochemistry #scicomm #realtimechem

Don’t get lax w/your titration stance, or you can get PARALLAX error 😬 Relax! 😅 To err is human & scientists are human, so scientists err & so does our equipment 👉 RANDOMLY &/or SYSTEMATICALLY 👉 bit.ly/2R2cGJs
#365DaysOfScience #biochemistry #scicomm #realtimechem

I don’t mean to be mean😶 but I don’t like deviation from my high standards & I like to err on the side of low error 👉 STANDARD DEVIATION & STANDARD ERROR OF THE MEAN 👉 bit.ly/2S5NsqQ
#365DaysOfScience #biochemistry #scicomm #realtimechem #chemistry #lifeinthelab

Did someone order some chaos? 🙋‍♀️ KOSMOTROPES bring order to water but CHAOTROPES bring chaos! 🌪 👉 bit.ly/2R9XkCI
#365DaysOfScience #biochemistry #scicomm #realtimechem #crystallography #chemistry #lifeinthelab #science

Did you know the jingle of jingle bells 🔔 is the sound of solutions hitting each other? 🤨 Mind blown? 🤯 Not to fear 😅 the bumbling biochemist is here to allay any of your concerns about ALLOYS! 👉
bit.ly/2SkBMAI
#365DaysOfScience #biochemistry #scicomm #realtimechem

Still trying to clean wax off of your menorah 🕎? 😩 What’s wax? 🤷‍♀️ None of your beeswax 🤪 Just kidding! Let me wax poetic abt waxes (& show you why water won’t help your cleaning…)👉 bit.ly/2LyfMj1
#365DaysOfScience #biochemistry #scicomm #realtimechem #chemistry

Last min x-mas shopping? 🛒 Make sure you pick up some 🥕🥕 for 🎅’s reindeer 🦌 👉 Whatdya say, let’s talk VITAMIN A! 🤗 👉bit.ly/2Rgr0xQ
#365DaysOfScience #biochemistry #scicomm #realtimechem #chemistry #lifeinthelab #science

Crystallographers hope for protein crystals & not amorphous precipitate🤞On #ChristmasEve, many hang their 🧦 & hope for carbon equivalent 👉 DIAMONDS & not COAL! 🤞All aboard CARBON ALLOTROPE Express! bit.ly/2Q1DvZt
#365DaysOfScience #biochemistry #scicomm #realtimechem

#MerryChristmas to all who celebrate! 🎄 & 🤞 even those who don’t can enjoy these 💡 It’s much wider (🙄) BUT also shorter than DNA in your cells 🤯 DNA packs up tight w/help of HISTONES 👉 bit.ly/2AbYEuY
#365DaysOfScience #biochemistry #scicomm #realtimechem #chemistry

These “grow-a-snowman”s grow up so fast! 😢 Too SAPpy? 🤨 You can do lots w/material that can soak up lots of water! 💦 SuperAbosrbent Polymers (SAPs) - not just for diapers! 👉 bit.ly/2rYz2wY
#365DaysOfScience #biochemistry #scicomm #realtimechem #chemistry #science

From HO HO HO to -OH -OH -OH. Time to get ready for #NewYears & to a chemist 👩‍🔬 “ALCOHOL” means something much more “generic” (but useful) than what most people think of…👉 bit.ly/2QWKWXp
#365DaysOfScience #biochemistry #scicomm #realtimechem #chemistry #ochem #science

What’s with all the MENTHOL? 🤷‍♀️ It’s hard not to *stare* when *I* see me *some* STEREOISOMERS🤓 but why do non-geeks also find it so *cool*? 😎❄️ 👉 bit.ly/2Q8Dnax
#365DaysOfScience #biochemistry #scicomm #realtimechem #chemistry #lifeinthelab #science

Don’t be a party pooper! 🙄 Learn the science behind PARTY POPPERS! 🎉 Knowledge 🧠 👉 a gift that stays after the confetti settles! 🤓 👉bit.ly/2ETe0I0
#365DaysOfScience #biochemistry #scicomm #realtimechem #chemistry #lifeinthelab #science

One of the best 🎁 I ever got was 2 boxes of AIR-ACTIVATED INSTANT HAND WARMERS! 🤗 How do they work? 🤷‍♀️ (sorry if my explanation’s a bit RUSTy, but when it comes to these warmers, rust is a must!)👇
bit.ly/2LF2O38
#365DaysOfScience #chemistry #scicomm #realtimechem

INSTANT COLD PACKS are a great way to 👀 THERMODYNAMICS in action 👉 Let’s go imaginary couch-shopping 💭 🛋🛒 What *Gibbs?*🤨 just go w/it… 🤓 👉 bit.ly/2Vlbdxa
#365DaysOfScience #scicomm #realtimechem #chemistry #lifeinthelab #science

#NewYears is the 1 day of the yr people talk about RESOLUTION as much as crystallographers! 🎉 Resolution usually means something different to us… 👉bit.ly/2H31IzF
#365DaysOfScience #crystallography #biochemistry #scicomm #realtimechem #chemistry #lifeinthelab #science

If your New Year’s resolution is to use less plastic, you can turn to chemistry to ETCH GLASS & make a bottle you can use over & over ♻️ & each time think about the science that went into making it! 🤓 bit.ly/2VpmYTi
#365DaysOfScience #scicomm #realtimechem #chemistry

Today I’m leaving a family visit to go back to grad school. So I thought it'd be fitting to talk abt LEAVING GROUPS 👉 Not the breaking-up-a-band type 👩‍🎤 but the allowing-chemical-swaps-to-proceed type 👉 bit.ly/2ADSbcH
#365DaysOfScience #scicomm #realtimechem #chemistry

Today I arrived back at grad school ✈️ And speaking of “arrivals”… lets touch BASE on what happens when a NUCLEOPHILE “arrives” at an ELECTROPHILE! 👉 bit.ly/2VutM1N
#365DaysOfScience #ochem #scicomm #realtimechem #chemistry #lifeinthelab #science

Do you cDNA in here? 🧐 I hope you don’t see INTRONS! ❌ And 🤞 you’ll *complement* my mRNA! 🤓 Today I'm talking RNA splicing, exon shuffling, & more 👉 bit.ly/2AsVdjG
#365DaysOfScience #biochemistry #scicomm #realtimechem #molecularbiology #lifeinthelab #science

Nusinersen (Spinraza™️) is the 1st FDA-approved drug to treat Spinal Muscular Atrophy (#SMA) 💪🏻 & it works by “overriding” cells’ natural “auto-correct” 👍 Learn how 👉 bit.ly/2QqQmon
#365DaysOfScience #biochemistry #scicomm #realtimechem #chemistry #ASO #RNA #science

The bumbling biochemist learned the hard way to inspect her vector 🕵️‍♀️ to make sure the desired gene’s the one that’s seen! 🧐PLASMID VECTORS are a useful way to make lots of protein & DNA! 🤗 👉 bit.ly/2CWPRil
#365DaysOfScience #biochemistry #scicomm #realtimechem

Polymerase chain reaction or polymerase *train* reaction? 🚂 In PCR, a molecular “train” copies pieces of DNA by traveling along it & laying down track ahead of it as it goes 👉 bit.ly/2FiBXsl
#365DaysOfScience #biochemistry #scicomm #realtimechem #molecularbiology #PCR

All *anneal* before the primer prima donna. 🙇‍♀️ She wants to show off her PRIMER DESIGN 🙄 but did she buy the right train tickets for the PCR journey? 🚂 & will she get there in Tm?👉 bit.ly/2CYLxzc
#365DaysOfScience #biochemistry #scicomm #realtimechem #molecularbiology

Unlike plasmid amplification & PCR which only *copy* DNA, the phosporamidite method of OLIGONUCLEOTIDE SYNTHESIS is a way to custom-make short pieces of DNA “from scratch” 1 letter at a time
bit.ly/2VIBBRH
#365DaysOfScience #biochemistry #scicomm #realtimechem #chemistry

There are several ways to “make” DNA. Which one you use depends on what you’re trying to do. Today’s #365DaysOfScience post compares & contrasts them & talks abt some extra decisions you have to make once you’ve chosen bit.ly/2SOlobD #biochemistry #scicomm #realtimechem

SULFUR 🆚 SELENIUM may not seem like a big deal 👉 but it matters a lot when there’s electrons to steal! Selenium-containing proteins (SELENOPROTEINS) are rare but important 👉 bit.ly/2FvesfW
#365DaysOfScience #biochemistry #scicomm #realtimechem #chemistry #lifeinthelab

KINASES are like “presentation chefs” 👩‍🍳 that embellish the protein products your “line cooks” make - but they do charge! 💸 ⚡️👉 bit.ly/2CkhBvD
#365DaysOfScience #biochemistry #scicomm #realtimechem #chemistry #lifeinthelab #sciencetechnology

Adenosine TriPhosphate (ATP) can be split & parts added in multiple ways & enzymes help determine what goes & what stays 👋 👉 bit.ly/2ssqhvt
#365DaysOfScience #biochemistry #scicomm #realtimechem #chemistry #lifeinthelab #science

Phew! We’re not out of Pfu! 😅 Though we might want to Taq a few more tubes onto our next order 🛒 We get to choose what DNA Pol to use when we do it in a PCR tube 👉 bit.ly/2VVRPqM
#365DaysOfScience #biochemistry #scicomm #realtimechem #chemistry #lifeinthelab #science

PCR problems? 😩 You can’t *jump start* PCR like you'd jump start your car 🚗🔋but you can HOT START it! ♨️🏁 In HOT START PCR, you “hide” Pol until you’re ready to go 🙈 👉 bit.ly/2RAQtTF
#365DaysOfScience #biochemistry #scicomm #realtimechem #chemistry #lifeinthelab

AGAR or AGAROSE? 🤔 Which is the one the bumbling biochemist chose? 🤷‍♀️ 👉 bit.ly/2MfWDmg
#365DaysOfScience #biochemistry #scicomm #realtimechem #chemistry #lifeinthelab #science

Is this AGAROSE a solid? A liquid? A gel? 🤔 How can you tell? 🤷‍♀️ People say knitting’s relaxing ☺️ & cooling agarose thinks so as well 🤓 👉bit.ly/2Rztc4L
#365DaysOfScience #biochemistry #scicomm #realtimechem #chemistry #lifeinthelab #science #molecularbiology #PCR

Oompa LMPA doompety doo, I’ve got some LOW-MELTING POINT AGAROSE (LMPA) magic for you! 🧙‍♀️Once you *recover* from groaning 🙄 let’s 💬 how LMPA helps us recover DNA! 👉 bit.ly/2ASXipa
#365DaysOfScience #biochemistry #scicomm #realtimechem #chemistry #lifeinthelab #science

Wait a SEC 🖐 you use *agarose* to separate *proteins*? 🤨 I thought agarose was for DNA? 🤔 And why’d my bigger protein travel faster than my smaller one in SIZE EXCLUSION CHROMATOGRAPHY (SEC)👉 bit.ly/2sFIoOx
#365DaysOfScience #biochemistry #scicomm #realtimechem

Agarose is like an empty bulletin board 👉 In AFFINITY CHROMATOGRAPHY we choose what to “post” 📌 to suit our protein’s “interests” 🤩 👉
bit.ly/2W8zo2b
#365DaysOfScience #biochemistry #scicomm #realtimechem #chemistry #lifeinthelab #science

At 60°C will an AGAROSE solution be a liquid or a gel? Trick question! But don't get hysterical! It’s just HYSTERESIS. An agarose gel may not have a 🧠 but temperature history it can retain! 👉 bit.ly/2S5XICs
#365DaysOfScience #biochemistry #scicomm #realtimechem

Why did the agarose gel cry? SYNERESIS! Not a great punch line but some cool science! 🤗 (not cool post formatting cuz pic 4 wasn’t busiest part of my day - though lots of protein is🤞 on the way)! 👉 bit.ly/2AYdQMC
#365DaysOfScience #biochemistry #scicomm #realtimechem

Hit a wall? No problem - it’s hot too! 😅 But hit a plastic ceiling? Your PCR could be held back unless you use a HEATED LID to prevent evaporated water from sabotaging your reaction! 👉 bit.ly/2DwW3hf
#365DaysOfScience #biochemistry #scicomm #realtimechem #chemistry

How do I know if my gene’s inside 🤷‍♀️ with COLONY PCR it cannot* hide! 🧐👉 Aka Pst… you don’t always have to purify that DNA first!
*exceptions apply… see terms of usage
bit.ly/2HzpfZ3
#365DaysOfScience #biochemistry #scicomm #realtimechem #chemistry #lifeinthelab

Specific “code words” (RESTRICTION SITES aka recognition sequences) written in DNA ✍️ act as “dotted lines” that tell RESTRICTION ENZYMES (aka restriction endonucleases, or REases) where to cut ✂️ 👉 bit.ly/2sQaiYw
#365DaysOfScience #biochemistry #scicomm #realtimechem

If the plasmid vector your insert hacks, blue-color-making protein the bacteria lacks! The plasmid has the sequence bacteria needs, but u wouldn’t know this if cloning succeeds! BLUE-WHITE SCREENING 👉
bit.ly/2MxNPs2
#365DaysOfScience #biochemistry #scicomm #realtimechem

Note: during the copy/paste process, I lost one of the bond lines between the 2 parts of the x-gal dimer - this double bond is important for the conjugation (communal electron sharing) that makes it absorb the light that makes it look blue (more to come)

Would you be a pal and pass the X-gal? Beta-galactosidase (B-gal) can split X-gal and make a blue product, but what makes that product blue? Could we change that hue? Are you DYEing to know? bit.ly/2B63p9W
#365DaysOfScience #biochemistry #scicomm #realtimechem #chemistry

The “classic” way to put your gene in is “cut & paste” with RESTRICTION but I prefer to “copy & staple” with SEQUENCE & LIGATION INDEPENDENT CLONING (SLIC) 👉 bit.ly/2Tkg5B1
#365DaysOfScience #biochemistry #scicomm #realtimechem #chemistry #lifeinthelab #science

Imagine this scenario 💭 you read an article about an awesome protein 😎 You want to figure out what it does, how it works, and what it looks like. Where do you start? 🤔 👉 bit.ly/2SkSG58
#365DaysOfScience #biochemistry #scicomm #realtimechem #chemistry #lifeinthelab

The poly-A tail provides a way to make cDNA copies from mRNA. 🤗 Let me tell you a tale about cDNA LIBRARIES 👉 bit.ly/2DP5ngD
#365DaysOfScience #biochemistry #scicomm #realtimechem #chemistry #lifeinthelab #science

What kind of CELLular plan do you have? 📱Why do I ask? 🤷‍♀️ We need to fill this flask w/HOST CELLS up to our RECOMBINANT PROTEIN EXPRESSION task! 🤓 Your choices? 👉 bit.ly/2G5N5tY
#365DaysOfScience #biochemistry #scicomm #realtimechem #chemistry #lifeinthelab #science

Have you met my new pET Hector? He’s a VECTOR! 🤗 He can’t play fetch 😞 but he *can* be used to make PROTEIN! 🤩 & he can do it on command! 👏 Learn how 👉 bit.ly/2GkgShC
#365DaysOfScience #biochemistry #scicomm #realtimechem #chemistry #lifeinthelab #science

If you want to get an organism to express a protein for you, you might want to “be polite” and use their spelling! CODON OPTIMIZATION 👉
bit.ly/2TBFLsU
#365DaysOfScience #biochemistry #scicomm #realtimechem #chemistry #lifeinthelab #science

This plasmid has 2 ORIGIN stories 🐣 BUT we only use 1 of them to REPLICATE & pass down our protein’s tale! So why does Hector the Vector have 2 ORIGINS OF REPLICATION?🤷‍♀️ Could he be a PHAGEMID?! 🤨 👉
bit.ly/2t3boA6
#365DaysOfScience #biochemistry #scicomm #realtimechem

We’re demanding lots of protein BUT the protein factories will only increase supply if we make those demands known! (& they have enough resources) ORIGINal content (& strange analogies) on PLASMID COPY NUMBER 👉 bit.ly/2REpkKM
#365DaysOfScience #biochemistry #scicomm

You can add chloramphenicol to get protein production to stall, paving the way to make more plasmid DNA.

Cm’s an antibiotic, but here you don’t add to kill, you add it to make low copy plasmids high copy at will 👉 bit.ly/2RHtuSg
#365DaysOfScience #biochemistry #scicomm

Kan kan, can it grow in KAN KAN? 👯‍♀️ Only cells with *kan* can ✅ If you “hire” bacteria to make protein for you, you want to make sure you only pay the ones actually doing your work! 👉 bit.ly/2tcW4ky
#365DaysOfScience #biochemistry #scicomm #realtimechem

Satellites are good for getting weather data 🛰 but SATELLITE COLONIES are NOT good for getting protein! Make sure your ampicillin-resistant plasmids don't share their superpower 👉 bit.ly/2tcIAVT
#365DaysOfScience #biochemistry #scicomm #realtimechem

Β-lactamase provides RESISTANCE to the antibiotic AMPICILLIN (Amp) by “popping” Amp’s LACTAM ring before Amp can “pop” the bacteria’s cell wall. And how it does it is *amase*-ing. 🤯👉 bit.ly/2WSXfmL
#365DaysOfScience #biochemistry #scicomm #realtimechem

On your marks, get TET, go! 🏁 In the game of plasmid-containing cells versus antibiotics, different bacterial teams take different strategies. Let’s take a 👀 at the players. Learn more 👉 bit.ly/2DpQfoH
#365DaysOfScience #biochemistry #scicomm #realtimechem

Today on random facts I came across that are tangentially related to what we’ve been talking about 👉 why can TETRACYCLINE antibiotics make growing teeth yellow? 🤷‍♀️ 👉 bit.ly/2UUMTkn
#365DaysOfScience #biochemistry #scicomm #realtimechem

There are several ways we can get “hints” about whether we successfully cloned a gene of interest into a plasmid, BUT for definitive proof, we need SEQUENCING PRIMERS to help us “hack in” & check ✅👉 bit.ly/2TGAvo5
#365DaysOfScience #biochemistry #scicomm #realtimechem

TAG, you’re it! (& by “it”, I mean my recombinantly-expressed protein of interest!) You can control the protein by controlling the gene & can add on AFFINITY TAGS to help purify it if you’re so keen❤️🏷 👉 bit.ly/2SPTjnJ
#365DaysOfScience #biochemistry #scicomm

To celebrate #ValentinesDay, let’s talk about finding partners 👉 FUSION PARTNERS 😍 bc some proteins don’t want to go it alone. Wanna learn SUM O re?👉 bit.ly/2N5bGjj
#365DaysOfScience #biochemistry #scicomm #realtimechem

Plan ahead for detours! ⛔️ The DNA roads towards recombinant protein expression can be SLIC, but you can plan ahead to easily change course! We design our SLIC cloning systems to be as “generic” as possible
👉 bit.ly/2GQ06HL
#365DaysOfScience #biochemistry #scicomm

Did my PCR work? 🤞 How can I tell? 🤷‍♀️ Better run an agarose gel! 👍 AGAROSE GEL ELECTROPHORESIS provides a way to separate differently-sized pieces of DNA! 🤗 Learn more 👉 bit.ly/2SDKE8I
#365DaysOfScience #biochemistry #scicomm #realtimechem

GEL-lo there! 👋 Let’s make sure we’re all on the same PAGE about similarities & differences between AGAROSE GEL ELECTROPHORESIS & SDS-PAGE (Sodium Dodecyl Sulfate-PolyAcrylamide Gel Electrophoresis) 👉 bit.ly/2Ik1g0s
#365DaysOfScience #biochemistry #scicomm

I hope I don’t get a bad reputation by talking too much about REPTATION 🙄 But this cool word does have a relation to our 💬 of gel electrophoretic separation! 🤓 So allow me to talk “somer” abt DNA TOPOISOMERS! 👉 bit.ly/2SZbasf
#365DaysOfScience #biochemistry #scicomm

Set up your AGAROSE GEL to RUN TO RED or your DNA samples will move backwards instead. And add GLYCEROL-containing loading buffer without a doubt, or your DNA samples will float up & out!
👉 bit.ly/2GynCcQ
#365DaysOfScience #biochemistry #scicomm #realtimechem

Hate hidden charges? 😒 So do nucleases! NUCLEASES cut DNA ✂️ but need magnesium (Mg²⁺ ) to do so. When we DON’T want DNA samples cut, we add EDTA to hide that Mg²⁺ in it’s polydentate claw! 🦀
👉 bit.ly/2SV2156
#365DaysOfScience #biochemistry #scicomm #realtimechem

We want to separate DNA by size, but proteins can hitch along for the ride 👉 SDS, with its *dodeca* a long tail will wash away those DNA-bound proteins without fail 🤞Learn more 👉 bit.ly/2ShecDV
#365DaysOfScience #biochemistry #scicomm #realtimechem

That pink you see’s just the TRACKING DYE. To see the DNA, you’ll need more than just your eye! Read more 👉 bit.ly/2SVjkTh
#365DaysOfScience #biochemistry #scicomm #realtimechem #molecularbiology

Get happy - it’s DAPI! 😃 Let me tell you the biochemist’s version of the princess and the pea. This story has a happy ending, DNA you can see! 🤩 👉 bit.ly/2U4na9r
#365DaysOfScience #biochemistry #scicomm #realtimechem #molecularbiology

The AMES TEST aims to test whether avoiding a certain chemical’s best 🧐 Is it a MUTAGEN? What does that mean? What can (& CAN’T) you learn from this REVERTANT SCREEN? 🤷‍♀️ Learn more 👉 bit.ly/2TkzbKR
#365DaysOfScience #biochemistry #scicomm #realtimechem

From ETHIDIUM BROMIDE, DNA cannot hide! 🧐 But should you? 🤷‍♀️I always thought this fluorescent stain was *extremely* dangerous but turns out it’s not quite so black & white (or invisible and orange)👉 bit.ly/2EwcZ82
#365DaysOfScience #biochemistry #scicomm #realtimechem

Too much UV light and your DNA’s no longer right! Here’s a quick primer on what’s called a PYRIMIDINE DIMER 👉 bit.ly/2Tm1HLS
#365DaysOfScience #biochemistry #scicomm #realtimechem

UREA PAGE - it’s all the rage! 🤩 If it’s large pieces of DNA you wanna separate, agarose is great 👍 But for small RNA, U REAlly need a better way! 😬 More on types of electrophoresis 👉 bit.ly/2XsNzQg
#365DaysOfScience #biochemistry #scicomm #realtimechem

Want to keep proteins from being made? Don’t call an Uber, call an AGO! & plug in a small RNA to tell it where you wannAgo! I hope you’ll allow me to *interfere* w/gel talk to tell u abt RNA INTERFERENCE (RNAi)👉 bit.ly/2EpYqBY
#365DaysOfScience #biochemistry #scicomm

Stains show you ALL the DNA or RNA there. BUT what if you only are interested in seeing a certain one? RADIOLABELING *only* shows you specific one(s) -> those that you first modify. Why? 👉 bit.ly/2VtYSG7
#365DaysOfScience #biochemistry #scicomm #realtimechem

Protein stuck to your DNA? Denaturants like SDS will wash 'em away Leave those out & proteins r there to stay & u can use an Electrophoretic Mobility Shift Assay (EMSA) to track them on their way! 👉 bit.ly/2tJO3Uq
#365DaysOfScience #biochemistry #scicomm #realtimechem

I hope it’s ok if I talk pKa! 🤞 Wondering why? 🤷‍♀️ So we can then talk pI! 👍 pKa is a measure of a molecule’s H⁺ “stinginess” & we can use it to figure out when & where a protein is charged 👉 bit.ly/2C2od2y
#365DaysOfScience #biochemistry #scicomm #realtimechem

I would always get really confused about why we call the negatively charged amino acids “acidic” and the + charged ones “basic.” So let me try to explain. 👉 bit.ly/2tM2ck6
#365DaysOfScience #biochemistry #scicomm #realtimechem

I’m a PhD student 👉 still waiting for *that* doctorate 🤞 but I’m already a pH Doctor! 🤓 I spend a lot of time making sure the pH of solutions is just where my proteins want it. How and Why? 🤷‍♀️ 👉 bit.ly/2IT67pC
#365DaysOfScience #biochemistry #scicomm #realtimechem

Bases steal protons and chromophores steal protons! Put them together and you can see color change! Ever wonder how pH paper works? You know I have! 👉 bit.ly/2C9bA5J
#365DaysOfScience #biochemistry #scicomm #realtimechem

Did you get the message? ☎️ Today I taught a lesson on the ENDOCRINE SYSTEM at @SUNYOldWestbury (1st time teaching a whole lesson to undergrads 🤗) so I hope you won’t *moan* if I discuss HORMONES! 👉 bit.ly/2XFVrOq
#365DaysOfScience #biochemistry #scicomm #realtimechem

It’s #InternationalWomensDay and this year’s theme is apparently #BalanceForBetter - speaking of which, if you're working with RNA or DNA, you better balance that pH! 👉 bit.ly/2TxubT6
#365DaysOfScience #biochemistry #scicomm #realtimechem

that figure should say "N & C" instead of "5' & 3'" sorry!

Let me *try* to explain how TRIzol provides a way to extract & purify RNA! TRIzol’s a brand name, but it’s harder to find a pun that works w/acid guanidinium thiocyanate–phenol–chloroform extraction 👉 bit.ly/2TtPe9Y
#365DaysOfScience #biochemistry #scicomm #RealTimeChem

I hope you don’t mind if my PCR products bind? 🤨 Biochemists win when we take them for a spin! “Spin Columns” are a quick & easy way to purify pieces of DNA! 👉 bit.ly/2Cd8vS9
#365DaysOfScience #biochemistry #scicomm #realtimechem

On the template plasmid, METHYL marks the spot but your new PCR products, this methyl they have not. Dpn-ding on your template & your further plans, you may need to DPNI DIGEST your PCR reaction
👉 bit.ly/2tZ17FJ
#365DaysOfScience #biochemistry #scicomm #realtimechem

I don’t have the *energy* to make a new post today 😩 so I thought it only fitting to revisit a post about how our cells store & transfer energy in the form of ATP 👉 bit.ly/2VZYqQh
#365DaysOfScience #biochemistry #scicomm #realtimechem

*Dam* it, this DNA has a typo 😩 BUT on which strand? 🤷‍♀️ How will the mismatch fixers know? 😬 Dam methyltransferase tells it where to go! 😅 👉 bit.ly/2O1uZKP
#365DaysOfScience #biochemistry #scicomm #realtimechem

Sometimes, you take an REase from one bacteria & try to use it to cut DNA copied in other bacteria ✂️ BUT those other bacteria have made their DNA incompatible with your REase scissors…😫 👉 bit.ly/2HBriKv
#365DaysOfScience #biochemistry #scicomm #realtimechem

When my older sister started learning cursive, I tried to mimic her - I would write in print, then go through & “cursivize” it by connecting the letters. DNA LIGASES do this to DNA letters. How?👉 bit.ly/2TFaLMT
#365DaysOfScience #biochemistry #scicomm #realtimechem

If you want to join a DNA strand, you’ll need to pay a fee 👉 energy provided in the form of something-TP. If you can’t afford it, there is another way. DNA LIGASE provides ATP to pay. Ligase vs Pol 👉 bit.ly/2TFdQN9
#365DaysOfScience #biochemistry #scicomm #realtimechem

What are biochemists’ favorite action figures? 🤔 Transformers! 🤓 In PLASMID TRANSFORMATION we can use chemically-competent cells and heat shock to get DNA into bacterial cells. Learn more 👉 bit.ly/2Jj7L47
#365DaysOfScience #biochemistry #scicomm #realtimechem

Do you have the impulse to give cells a pulse? 🤨 I’m sure you can’t wait to learn how we ELECTROPORATE! 🤓 ELECTROPORATION is a way to open up tunnels into cells and get DNA to go into them 👉 bit.ly/2Cph8JG
#365DaysOfScience #biochemistry #scicomm #realtimechem

If you tell DNA to “hug a tree” it might just hug a dendritically-branched CATIONIC CARRIER MOLECULE. But instead of serving as a way to stay in place, this gets the DNA to move - into cells! 🚗
👉 bit.ly/2HsWlsV
#365DaysOfScience #biochemistry #scicomm #realtimechem

Transformation's just 1 form of HORIZONTAL GENE TRANSFER (HGT) -> this type of DNA-sharing is “between colleagues” - or even between “enemies” - and it gives evolution new things to work with 👉 bit.ly/2TkVLPa
#365DaysOfScience #biochemistry #scicomm #realtimechem

The DH5-alpha-bet soup of recombinant protein engineering often starts with DH5α bacterial cells. We’ve talked a lot about different ways we can get DNA into bacteria . But what’s already in there? 👉 bit.ly/2HLuB1S
#365DaysOfScience #biochemistry #scicomm #realtimechem

Did some SOB steal your SOC? 🤬 For now, since we’re in the plasmid amplification phase, let’s let it be and use LB! we feed bacteria in return for their work & there are different types of food 👉 bit.ly/2TV150K
#365DaysOfScience #biochemistry #scicomm #realtimechem

Bringing some pep to the MINIPREP! Aka ALKALINE LYSIS, “minipreps” are experiments in which we separate & purify plasmid DNA we put into bacteria from all the stuff that was already in there. How? 👉 bit.ly/2Ty5HVS
#365DaysOfScience #biochemistry #scicomm #realtimechem

What actually happens to DNA when we “send it for sequencing”? 🤷‍♀️ SANGER SEQUENCING) is a way to “read” the sequence of nucleotides (DNA letters) in pieces of DNA. Lots more 👉 bit.ly/2Tul9SJ
#365DaysOfScience #biochemistry #scicomm #realtimechem

Today started a wk-long Physical Biology of the Cell course taught by Caltech's Rob Phillips. So far, so awesome! Got to practice 1 of my fave “tricks,” DIMENSIONAL ANALYSIS so thought I’d reshare 👉 bit.ly/2UhjYL3
#365DaysOfScience #biochemistry #scicomm #realtimechem

Course has emphasized importance of having multiple lines of evidence so you don’t fall into the precise but inaccurate trap of “but my error bars are so small!” So let’s revisit PRECISION vs ACCURACY👉bit.ly/2JHiup0
#365DaysOfScience #biochemistry #scicomm #realtimechem

I’m releasing a *Molar* report! Molarity tells you how many of a thing is in a volume of solvent. But how do we define a “thing” & if you put in one thing does it stay 1 “thing” or become “things”? 👉 bit.ly/2FEmkLw
#365DaysOfScience #biochemistry #scicomm #realtimechem

Getting through the fog of the log 😬 LOGARITHMS don’t come *naturally* to many (including me), but, as I’m frequently being reminded, they’re really *common* and useful, esp. 4 exponential growth 👉 bit.ly/2TCM2UE
#365DaysOfScience #biochemistry #scicomm #realtimechem

Go to your happy place - which one?! 🤷‍♀️ Say you have the options of Disneyland and Disneyworld. STATISTICAL MECHANICS compares places and tries to figure out which one’s “better” & more likely 👉 bit.ly/2CJUgVk
#365DaysOfScience #biochemistry #scicomm #realtimechem

While some 20-somethings are preparing for their “big days” 👰🤵💒 I’m preparing posts about BigDyes 🤓 I’m in love with biochemistry! And the biochemistry behind these dyes provides lots to love !👉 bit.ly/2uyEpEB
#365DaysOfScience #biochemistry #scicomm #realtimechem

I like to think of FLUORESCENCE involving electrons moving between floors of a high-rise apartment building, whose floorplan we can represent with a JABLONSKI DIAGRAM.👉 bit.ly/2HRnRQH
#365DaysOfScience #biochemistry #scicomm #realtimechem

Keep your friends close and your FRET partners closer! FRET is like a sort of wire energy money transfer, and this sort of transfer can only happen if the molecules are really close 👉 bit.ly/2UaXNqv
#365DaysOfScience #biochemistry #scicomm #realtimechem

Have you seen my fluorescein? 🕵️‍♀️ Seen 🆚 not seen, what could that mean? We may have reason to FRET – there may be an energy-stealer on the loose! Do our witness’ spectral stories “overlap”? 👉 bit.ly/2FKtInv
#365DaysOfScience #biochemistry #scicomm #realtimechem

It's more than just a witty statement that popped into my head one day so I decided to make it #thebumblingbiochemist’s catchphrase, it really is a motto that describes my outlook (& inlook) on life 👉 bit.ly/2CVoy7P
#365DaysOfScience #biochemistry #scicomm #realtimechem

Is Florida ready to meet #thebumblingbiochemist? And are you ready to meet some of the MOLECULAR FRIENDS I’ll be learning more about with some organismal friends (fellow scientists) at #EB2019? 👉 bit.ly/2G01Kpg
#365DaysOfScience #biochemistry #scicomm #realtimechem

Today I helped build a house for #EB2019 It’s amazing to think that every second your cells are building & building & building proteins! - lots of opportunities for GENE REGULATION👉 bit.ly/2Vn5fuZ
#365DaysOfScience #biochemistry #scicomm #realtimechem

Tonight at #EB2019 I got to hear a talk by Dr. Brian Druker, who developed Gleevec™️ (imatinib) as a CML leukemia treatment. It works by targeting a mutant tyrosine kinase called Bcr-Abl. How? 👉 bit.ly/2KgFKL5
#365DaysOfScience #biochemistry #scicomm #realtimechem

I hope my excitement & gratitude for being at #EB2019 isn’t “lost in translation!” 🤓 Today @Dunham_Lab gave a great talk about tRNNA & TRANSLATION. Let me try to *decode* that for you… #ASBMB2019 👉 bit.ly/2Vt8JMR
#365DaysOfScience #biochemistry #scicomm #realtimechem

Why am I so happy in this pic? Look who I’m sitting next to - Dr. Namandjé Bumpus! She studies how drugs called NUCLEOSIDE ANALOGUES used to treat HIV get processed in our cells #eb2019 #asbmb2019 👉 bit.ly/2D2AynW
#365DaysOfScience #biochemistry #scicomm #realtimechem

Yep. That’s me. Speaking at #ASBMB2019 #EB2019 about how I use analogies, humor, & authentic geekiness to teach people abt biochemistry. all past posts, listed by topic 👉 bit.ly/2D2AynW
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👉 bit.ly/2OYOgwR
#365DaysOfScience #biochemistry #scicomm #realtimechem

The link to past posts is actually this. Sorry! bit.ly/2OllAB0

and just in time for my annual #NSF activity report - broader impacts: ✅

I’m ba-ack! So let’s review the PCR train track! #EB2019 was 🤩! Now I’m back w/refreshed vigor but can't pipet yet! Spent day trying to explain my *unique* broader impacts on NSF annual report 😆👉 bit.ly/2VEoS1W
#365DaysOfScience #biochemistry #scicomm #realtimechem

Mutant makers must have markers! ✍️ We make lots of mutant proteins to test lots of things. Today I was working on purifying 3 of them, so numbers & color-coding were a must! Read more 👉 bit.ly/2X3rHd6
#365DaysOfScience #biochemistry #scicomm #realtimechem

What do you need in a MARKER? Something to color it (COLORANT), something to carry that colorant out (SOLVENT), and something to keep it there (RESIN). Permanent's in the eye of the SOLVENT 👉 bit.ly/2G7gDoA
#365DaysOfScience #biochemistry #scicomm #realtimechem

STRUCTURE AND FUNCTION are intimately connected, as you can appreciate by thinking about a spoon versus a knife. We use SITE-DIRECTED MUTAGENESIS to investigate what does what in proteins 👉 bit.ly/2vbUdO5
#365DaysOfScience #biochemistry #scicomm #realtimechem

⚠️ New Wikipedia article alert!!!! ⚠️ Dr. NAMANDJE BUMPUS studies anti-HIV drug metabolism - metabowhatta? Learn about Dr. Bumpus on Wikipedia & learn about her work here 👉 bit.ly/2Uz3Jtw
#365DaysOfScience #biochemistry #scicomm #realtimechem

Direct link to pharmacologist Dr. Namandje Bumpus' new @Wikipedia article 👉 en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Namandje_…

When we talk about “structure,” we’re usually referring to the overall 3D structure, but PROTEINS HAVE LAYERS OF STRUCTURE underneath the final product we “see” 👉 bit.ly/2IB3lUm
#365DaysOfScience #biochemistry #scicomm #realtimechem

Peptide weddings (TRANSLATION) are some of most expensive unions a cell can make & cells have to make lots (proteins are made up of a chain of “married” amino acids). Why so energetically expensive?👉 bit.ly/2GhbFps
#365DaysOfScience #biochemistry #scicomm #realtimechem

sorry for the repost (this is actually yesterday's post) - had to fix something in the graphic - you'll still get a new one tonight

see today's post for fixed pix

INITIATION FACTORS get the peptide wedding started! 🤗 You need to make sure you *factor* in the cost of reserving the ribosome chapel! TRANSLATIONAL INITIATION 👇
👉 bit.ly/2KNe00D
#365DaysOfScience #biochemistry #scicomm #realtimechem

t’s not just the #MuellerReport getting released - RELEASE FACTORS rain on the peptide wedding day parade in TRANSLATIONAL TERMINATION to finish making a protein. How does it work? 👉 bit.ly/2IFmmEZ
#365DaysOfScience #biochemistry #scicomm #realtimechem

Why’s matzoh flat, but matzoh balls fluffy? Fluffiness comes from gas generation in dough that causes it to expand (leaven)& can come from biological fermenters (yeast) or chemical LEAVENING AGENTS
👉 bit.ly/2Zm7KAa
#365DaysOfScience #biochemistry #scicomm #realtimechem

Yeast don’t set out to make our bread rise or brains fog, they're just trying to make energy for themselves! Yeast still make their mark this holiday. #HappyPassover everyone! 👉 bit.ly/2UufbSj
#365DaysOfScience #biochemistry #scicomm #realtimechem

Hey peeps!🐥 Did you know Peeps are ideal for demonstrating ideal gas laws? 🤓 👉 bit.ly/2GxZbLg
#365DaysOfScience #biochemistry #scicomm #realtimechem

I’m a morning person. So staying up late like I have to tonight calls for my favorite PURINE - caffeine! We usually 🤔 of purines in the context of NUCLEIC ACIDS, but caffeine is also a purine! 🤯 👉 bit.ly/2UStHZh
#365DaysOfScience #biochemistry #scicomm #realtimechem

Pictures from the PROTEIN TRANSLATION WEDDING are out! 🤗 Over the weekend I had some time to make some graphics to describe translation. Twitter only lets me post 4 per tweet so check reply & here 👉 bit.ly/2XwGdKO
#365DaysOfScience #biochemistry #scicomm #realtimechem

#365DaysofScience translational wedding pics part 2

#365DaysofScience translational wedding pics part 3

If your ribosome stalls, who you gonna call? RIBOSOME-ASSOCIATED QUALITY CONTROL (RQC)! Let me have a go at explaining RQC and NO-GO mRNA processing! "protein machinery de-paper-jamming" 👉bit.ly/2KWfcPo
#365DaysOfScience #biochemistry #scicomm #realtimechem

The antibiotic Gentamicin acts like a “love potion” that lets amino acids “marry” partners other than their soul mates w/a love is so strong, they don’t want to move off the altar. Learn how 👉 bit.ly/2Pw4vSd
#365DaysOfScience #biochemistry #scicomm #realtimechem

If your ribosomes get into a crash when making proteins, you want to check that involved parties are ok before you try to resell them! RQC uses clever “sorting mechanisms” to reuse vs salvage parts 👉 bit.ly/2GACRzp
#365DaysOfScience #biochemistry #scicomm #realtimechem

UBIQUITIN's like pre-addressed shipping label that gets attached to proteins your cell wants to get rid of. UPS (Ubiquitin Proteasome System) delivers them to “trash incinerator” called PROTEASOME 👉 bit.ly/2VxIZ5c
#365DaysOfScience #biochemistry #scicomm #realtimechem

today's is a long one (got over-excited) so might be easier to read on Facebook facebook.com/thebumblingbio…

What did E3 say to the protein no one else wanted? Hey DEGRON, you turn me on! Features of proteins called DEGRONS act as DEGRadatiON signals that flag proteins for ubiquitinylation👉 bit.ly/2Vxhvws
#365DaysOfScience #biochemistry #scicomm #realtimechem

more pics 👇 and more text 👉 bit.ly/2Vxhvws
I hadn't heard about this before #cshlubiq but I find it so cool!

I’ve run MANY a GEL ELECTROPHORESIS while I work towards my thesis! Today’s been a super busy day, running many an assay & separating molecules by size the electrophoretic way! So let's review 👉 bit.ly/2GKOUdB
#365DaysOfScience #biochemistry #scicomm #realtimechem

Me - strange? Nonsense! NONSENSE MEDIATED DECAY provides a way to get rid of early stop-signed mRNA! And I hope yoUAGree it’s immature to start lAUGhing at PREMATURE STOP CODONS! 👉 bit.ly/2GFSdmc
#365DaysOfScience #biochemistry #scicomm #realtimechem

But officer, I didn’t see a stop sign! What if there’s NO stop codon? This triggers a process called NONSTOP DECAY (NSD) 👉 bit.ly/2WiYfzO
#365DaysOfScience #biochemistry #scicomm #realtimechem

How many cakes would a ribosome bake if a ribosome could bake cakes? A ribosome would bake all the cakes it could bake until RNAi shuts its protein-making bakery down! more pics below & more text 👉 bit.ly/2PJBSkK #365DaysOfScience #biochemistry #scicomm #realtimechem

pics part 2

pics part 3

Caps off to mRNA decapping! use to get through cellular security, then remove to to take advantage of that security -> prevent protein “baked goods” from being made & expose recipes to shredders!👉 bit.ly/2GY0wKh
#365DaysOfScience #biochemistry #scicomm #realtimechem

We owe much of our understanding of these mRNA decay processes to a brilliant biochemist named Dr. Eliza Izaurralde, whom we lost much too soon. You can learn more about her in this #WiSEWednesday profile from @CSHL_WISE: bit.ly/2Jewy7N

Proteins are way cooler than cookies & cakes, but a more fun analogy cake does make! How to open, manage & shut down protein bakeries? GENE REGULATION #thebumblingbiochemist way! more pics 👇 & text👉 bit.ly/2J2x8Gr
#365DaysOfScience #biochemistry #scicomm #realtimechem

pics part 2

pics part 3

Hey @Pixar - I’ve got a movie pitch! 🤓 Inside Out 2 - it takes you inside a cell making proteins. LOTS more science details on all the various “scenes” can be found (listed by topic) here 👉bit.ly/2OllAB0 more px👇
#365DaysOfScience #biochemistry #scicomm #realtimechem

Inside Out 2 part 2

Inside Out 2 part 3

How to MEASURE protein production productivity? Different ways. How many copies of recipe are made? in circulation? actually being used? are the final products sticking around? Read more 👉 bit.ly/2vPQ56J
#365DaysOfScience #biochemistry #scicomm #realtimechem

I didn't have time/space to go into it there, but the same original recipe can be edited different ways to give you different variations. This is called alternative splicing & evolution can combine parts of recipes (exon shuffling). You can learn more here bit.ly/2AsVdjG

Most RIBOSOME FOOTPRINTs aren’t quite this big… but they still are useful to see what proteins a cell’s making, how quickly, and whether (and where) there are any “holdups” 👉 bit.ly/2DTndP8
#365DaysOfScience #biochemistry #scicomm #realtimechem

Science meetings can be like geek Disneyland - so let’s talk about POLYSOME PROFILING (way to look at protein production) in terms of Disneyland trying to see how popular its diff rides are 👉 bit.ly/2HcbBYv
#365DaysOfScience #biochemistry #scicomm #realtimechem

Science is sometimes stressful & even superheroes struggle! have a great mentor who encouraged me 2 do something fun 🙏 So graphics 4 me 2 remind myself why I don’t give up & review of EXPERIMENTAL DESIGN 4u 👉 bit.ly/2VoXt8a
#365DaysOfScience #biochemistry #realtimechem

What's a ribosome look like? I ❤️ this sculpture, but it’s far from high-RESOLUTION. But today I got to hear a great talk from Venki Ramakrishnan, who provided us w/much closer look w/CRYSTALLOGRAPHY👉 bit.ly/2Jxtcgn
#365DaysOfScience #biochemistry #scicomm #realtimechem

If Disneyland’s happiest place on earth & each of our cells is like a copy of of it, we should all b super happy right? But “park security” - “cop car” guided by miRNA can shut down rides at will 👉 bit.ly/2Q0vNAp
#365DaysOfScience #biochemistry #scicomm #realtimechem

micro-RNAs (miRNAs) direct protein-recipe-destroying machinery at specific “target” recipes (mRNAs) to prevent production of specific proteins. What’s this tiny RISC-taking superhero’s origin story? 👉 bit.ly/2JAy9Vw
#365DaysOfScience #biochemistry #scicomm #realtimechem

Lately I feel like I keep getting knocked down on my PhD journey. But sometimes scientists celebrate knock-downs, when it’s a gene getting knocked down with siRNA or shRNA that is 👉 bit.ly/2VYTZJ8
#365DaysOfScience #biochemistry #scicomm #realtimechem

If u want 2 *interfere* w/protein production w/o messing w/the gene, u can turn to RNA INTERFERENCE to lessen its protein If instead u want to permanently knock gene out CRISPR/Cas9 offers a route 👉 bit.ly/30mHjuE
#365DaysOfScience #biochemistry #scicomm #realtimechem

If your Cas & PAM match, onto DNA Cas'll latch & use its sgRNA to take a look around where it has bound. If the guide matches too, stuff Cas will do. But if the sequence ain’t right, Cas will alight!👉 bit.ly/2HlCKJG
#365DaysOfScience #biochemistry #scicomm #realtimechem

If u want to study a protein on its own, you’ll want to make a MOLECULAR CLONE Cuz subtle effects can b hard to tell when u make changes to genes inside a cell Gene editing cell-bio vs biochem style👉 bit.ly/2EfCycW
#365DaysOfScience #biochemistry #scicomm #realtimechem

🎶 You don’t know what you’ve got till it’s gone 🎶 How do you know if a protein isn’t doing what it’s supposed to do if you don’t know what it’s supposed to do? FORWARD GENETICS & REVERSE GENETICS 👉 bit.ly/2W5hGzt
#365DaysOfScience #biochemistry #scicomm #realtimechem

🎶 CRISPR’s got a long list of ex-invaders, they’ll tell you Cas9 cut their DNA. But CRISPR’s got a blank space, baby, & phage, it’ll write your name! 🎶 How bacteria use CRISPR for adaptive immunity👉 bit.ly/2JQ1Baq
#365DaysOfScience #biochemistry #scicomm #realtimechem

If a biologist talks abt swapping out cassettes, they’re probably not referring to Walkmans! CRE-LOX RECOMBINATION has had longer stay cuz it offers a way to swap pieces of DNA 👉 bit.ly/2HtdAcm & more pics below
#365DaysOfScience #biochemistry #scicomm #realtimechem

pics part 2

Time to FLEx some biochemical muscle fix that flickering genetic switch. FLEx (FLip-EXcision) switches can be used to turn one gene on while turning another off and keep them that way. 👉 bit.ly/2Hx23J7
#365DaysOfScience #biochemistry #scicomm #realtimechem

Pure proteins! Refresher on what occupied my day - size exclusion chromatography (SEC) (aka gel filtration) and SDS-PAGE.👉 bit.ly/2EphbGt
#365DaysOfScience #biochemistry #scicomm #realtimechem

I hope it’s o-Ka if I use Kd and not Ka when telling you about BINDING AFFINITY and how it’s kinda like taking a biochemical “census” of how many molecular “singles” versus “couples” there are. 👉 bit.ly/2JyBbuj
#365DaysOfScience #biochemistry #scicomm #realtimechem

You can’t get too perky when you see a protein peak until you run an SDS-PAGE gel & let the protein(s) speak! It may look like it’s pure but how can you be sure? PROTEIN CHROMATOGRAPHY museumified 👉 bit.ly/2VKBJz0
#365DaysOfScience #biochemistry #scicomm #realtimechem

A very special #365DaysOfScience - my first official post as Student Ambassador for the @iubmb!

https://twitter.com/iubmb/status/1132057317145374721

If you’ve seen my lab bench in middle of a protein prep, u know I can make quite a mess, but when it comes to the protein itself I’m a stickler for cleanliness. What’s actually going on in an AKTA?
👉 bit.ly/30LklxG
#365DaysOfScience #biochemistry #scicomm #realtimechem

What’s a typical protein purification workflow? How do we select what stays and what goes? Is the prep going well? How can I tell? Disappearing bands on an SDS-PAGE gel. More pics bellow & text 👉 bit.ly/2VMELTe
#365DaysOfScience #biochemistry #scicomm #realtimechem

more pics...

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final pic

From gene to gel - hope it goes well! Pure picked protein production from start to finish (today focusing on the start & finish). More pics below & text 👉 bit.ly/2Wz0bb6
#365DaysOfScience #biochemistry #scicomm #realtimechem

more pics...

rest of pics

Sonicating in style! (actually ULTRA-SONICATING in ultra-style). Too energetic to hear, but just right to DNA-SHEAR! And help get our protein free & clear 👉 bit.ly/2JIJ6W7
#365DaysOfScience #biochemistry #scicomm #realtimechem

This post on basics of acids & bases's dedicated to a pH-enominal woman, my late grandmother. Don’t know what she studied in that class that had such a lasting impact, but guessing this was on agenda👉 bit.ly/2KcZTjk
#365DaysOfScience #biochemistry #scicomm #realtimechem

No time for fresh content today bc my mind's being stuffed with fresh content at #cshlsymp19! 1 of keynote speakers was Adrian Krainer so here's a revisit of nusinersen. more pix 👇 & text 👉 bit.ly/2K9G4tk
#365DaysOfScience #biochemistry #scicomm #realtimechem

other pics

It's Friday - which means it's time for a post as my role as Student Ambassador for the @iubmb. This week it's all about molecules! What they are & why they're so cool I want to get #PeriodicTable trend-ing! Check it out! #365DaysOfScience

https://twitter.com/iubmb/status/1134593194438455296

Do you know the attraction of an RNA EXTRACTION? I’m sure many of the folks here at #cshlsymp19 do! Actually it’s not that fun - but let’s try to make it fun!
👉 bit.ly/2Xj4Zyc
#365DaysOfScience #biochemistry #scicomm #realtimechem

Hard to “feel blue” after 5 jam-packed days of #RNA talks at #cshlsymp19 & thankfully some of these colonies don’t either & that means that they have my gene! So let's review the BLUE-WHITE SCREEN 👉 bit.ly/2Xm6prR
#365DaysOfScience #biochemistry #scicomm #realtimechem

Custom DNA’s cheap, but RNA’s expensive! When companies synthesize RNA using SOLID-STATE SYNTHESIS, they have to protect RNA from itself & protect their profit margins. more text👉 bit.ly/2We8e8W & pics 👇
#365DaysOfScience #biochemistry #scicomm #realtimechem

pics part 2/3

last pics

Are LOCKED NUCLEIC ACIDS the “key” to custom RNA binding affinity? LNA’s pretzel-y legs help it stick and stay stuck to RNA which is good for things where you want the binding to be tight & specific 👉 bit.ly/2KuxZiX
#365DaysOfScience #biochemistry #scicomm #realtimechem

No broken bones but, tx 2 BETA-LACTAM ANTIBIOTICS, broken-down bacterial cell walls! Bruise somehow led to cellulitis - So antibiotics 4m (seem 2b working well) & lesson on *how* they’re working 4u! 👉 bit.ly/31beK3X
#365DaysOfScience #biochemistry #scicomm #realtimechem

I’m a desalting column, short & stout - small things stay in while big things flow out. The reason they do this is that they take a shorter route, so put your sample in & exchange the buffers out! 👉 bit.ly/2KxDEVF
#365DaysOfScience #biochemistry #scicomm #realtimechem

Friday! - means time for another post as student ambassador for the @iubmb! And today's all about proteins! How do they get the form that lets them perform? #scicomm #biochemistry #molecularbiology #biology #sciencelife #science #realtimechem

https://twitter.com/iubmb/status/1137136860956844037

Give some thought to the WESTERN BLOT - Specific proteins it can help you find by seeing if matching antibodies can bind! Start w/gel to separate proteins by size then transfer to membrane to analyze👉 bit.ly/2Iy5b6r
#365DaysOfScience #biochemistry #scicomm #realtimechem

When are soggy sandwiches *good*? In WET ELECTROBLOTTING for a Western blot! You want your sponge-filter paper-gel-membrane-filter paper-sponge sandwich soggy. Learn why 👉 bit.ly/2XzNRV3
#365DaysOfScience #biochemistry #scicomm #realtimechem

From blot to block! Unlike antibodies which we choose for their pickiness, the membrane holding the proteins we send antibodiesprobing for is protein-sticky, but it isn’t picky! So we have to BLOCK 👉 bit.ly/2wIULM2
#365DaysOfScience #biochemistry #scicomm #realtimechem

If you hear biologists talking about Tweens, they’re likely discussing DETERGENTS not 11-year-olds! Specifically, they’re likely discussing Tween®20, which *deters* non-specific interactions. How? 👉 bit.ly/2XKuhWs
#365DaysOfScience #biochemistry #scicomm #realtimechem

When biochemists debate PBS & TBS, they’re probably not arguing about the TV channels - they’re talking buffers we use for steadily mimicking biological conditions 👉 bit.ly/2X4Yhz7
#365DaysOfScience #biochemistry #scicomm #realtimechem

Don’t feel negative if you’re purifying an anion - catch it w/a cation! Ion Exchange Chromatography separates proteins by charge. Q or S? No need to stress - use pI & pH to figure out what’s best 👉 bit.ly/2WKgxyg
#365DaysOfScience #biochemistry #scicomm #realtimechem

Just like proteins, NUCLEIC ACIDS have structure too. This week’s *Bri*fing from the Bench for the @iubmb is all about the alphabet of DNA and RNA! #365daysofscience #biochemistry #RealTimeChem #scicomm

https://twitter.com/iubmb/status/1139750722247913473?s=21

I spent today with my family celebrating my grandma’s life - it was hard, but so nice to see her so happy because she made us so happy - I hope you’ll help me honor her by engaging with senior citizens through science massivesci.com/articles/senio…
#365DaysOfScience #sciout #scicomm

Today for #FathersDay2019 we took my dad to see RENT. They sing about the HIV treatment AZT a DNA letter mimic that acts as a chain terminator - similar to what we use for DNA sequencing 👉 bit.ly/2Xb5LAL
#365DaysOfScience #biochemistry #scicomm #realtimechem

Iron-ically, although this is tarnished, only iron can truly “rust” but hopefully I can *alloy* any concerns about metals, alloys, and oxidation without tarnishing my reputation. 👉 instagram.com/p/By1WFo2hAM8/…
#365DaysOfScience #biochemistry #scicomm #realtimechem

Through a cuvette the spectrophotometer allows us to peer & measure concentrations w/help of Beer! Beer’s law lets you convert between concentration of a dissolved thing & how much light it absorbs 👉 bit.ly/2RmRHyo
#365DaysOfScience #biochemistry #scicomm #realtimechem

Even w/limited sample, spectroscopic fun doesn’t have to stop - measure concentrations using a NanoDrop! From a little drop of liquid on pedestal, surface tension makes a cuvette-less column - cool! 👉 bit.ly/2KZ8vKQ
#365DaysOfScience #biochemistry #scicomm #realtimechem

Do you listen to your spectrograph peaks when they try to speak? That peakiest peak *might* tell you concentration, but rest of spectrum can tell you about contamination! Are you in this situation? 👉 bit.ly/2KtUbL3
#365DaysOfScience #biochemistry #scicomm #realtimechem

You're invited to the peptide wedding in this week's Bri-fing from the Bench for the @iubmb. This week's all about TRANSLATION! #365DaysOfScience #biochemistry #scicomm #realtimechem #molecularbiology

https://twitter.com/iubmb/status/1142392895049273347

When we use antibodies “in vitro”, there’s no immune system to alert, but the antibody can still bind & this makes the thing you’re looking for easier to find! Like in a Western Blot 👉 bit.ly/31PvrlO
#365DaysOfScience #biochemistry #scicomm #realtimechem

Fixed pic, sorry: When we use antibodies “in vitro”, there’s no immune system to alert, but antibody can still bind & makes thing easier to find! Like proteins in a Western Blot 👉 bit.ly/31PvrlO
#365DaysOfScience #biochemistry #scicomm #realtimechem

Is monoclonal or polyclonal the way to go when you’re playing antibody “Where’s Waldo?” MONOCLONAL & POLYCLONAL ANTIBODIES in Where’s Waldo analogy - any takers? more pics below & text 👉 bit.ly/2ZIatna
#365DaysOfScience #biochemistry #scicomm #realtimechem

more pics & text 👉 bit.ly/2ZIatna

Did someone put EDTA in my Nickel-NTA? Today I was blue because my resin wasn’t! The key to IMAC (Immobilized Metal Affinity Chromatography) purification is *intended* chelation! 👉 bit.ly/2Fs8taY
#365DaysOfScience #biochemistry #scicomm #realtimechem

seems I didn't salvage it after all 😩

I saved it! The problem was too much protein!!!!!!! My protein stripped the column 😲 50ml resin this time...

Do you like t*His* hat? There’s a resin AND an antibody for that! Not your cuppa tea? Try GST! Affinity tags, like Histidine (His) tags, often designed for purification can have other applications 👉 bit.ly/2XBu9eI
#365DaysOfScience #biochemistry #scicomm #realtimechem

If there’s 1 thing biochemists hate, it’s unwanted protein PRECIPITATE! Bankers fear stock market crashes & biochemists fear protein crashes. & proteins crash much more often! You can *bank* on it! 👉 bit.ly/2Xws1VP
#365DaysOfScience #biochemistry #scicomm #realtimechem

Glutathione’s got it going on &your protein coming off! Are you usin’ a GST fusion? Or SUMOther fusion protein tag? These can help with proteins whose expression lags & help them properly fold 👉 bit.ly/2LoRzOg
#365DaysOfScience #biochemistry #scicomm #realtimechem

What scientists are you most likely to find stripping? Protein biochemists! But we’re not taking off our clothes - we’re usually putting on layers 4 cold room... We're stripping metal from columns 👉 bit.ly/2XGQiZ6
#365DaysOfScience #biochemistry #scicomm #realtimechem

Using DTT? How could you tell? I recognized that distinct rotten-egg smell! Can the bumbling biochemist reduce REDUCING AGENTS into a post? Maybe if she focuses on the ones biochemists use most 👉 bit.ly/2Yiya50
#365DaysOfScience #biochemistry #scicomm #realtimechem

Feeling all alone? Have a lone electron you can loan? In a radical polymerization ride, the oxidant APS helps put the poly in polyacrylamide! 👉 bit.ly/2FFI9dd
#365DaysOfScience #biochemistry #scicomm #realtimechem

What do curly hair and snappy rubber bands have in common? Other than that they don’t get along? Sulfur crosslinks! I hope you’ll perm-it me to discuss! 👉 bit.ly/2FJUXPU
#365DaysOfScience #biochemistry #scicomm #realtimechem

Cut out the puns? That’d be no fun! Cut off the tag - now that wouldn’t be a drag! Endo- & exo- something-ases. What cuts what? And where? 👉 bit.ly/2XLvArd
#365DaysOfScience #biochemistry #scicomm #realtimechem

The bumbling biochemists sees bubbles! Bubbles from the wires of a gel electrophoresis module are like the biochemist’s version of looking to a waving flag to know it’s windy 👉 bit.ly/2XMLMbG
#365DaysOfScience #biochemistry #scicomm #realtimechem

Fireworks or fire-won’t-works? Redox reactions put the work in fireworks and G - it’s pretty cool! So let’s see how redox & thermodynamics apply to the fireworks we see in the sky! 👉 bit.ly/2XrKuUi
#365DaysOfScience #biochemistry #scicomm #realtimechem #July4th

Cleaning tons and tons of bottles & flasks wasn't the only reason I was thinking about soaps a lot today. Learn more about soaps and their fellow lipid friends in today's Bri-fing from the Bench for the @iubmb! #365DaysOfScience #biochemistry #scicomm

https://twitter.com/iubmb/status/1147280188209692672

Hydrogen peroxide is an electron hog - let me explain in terms of a butt-sniffing dog! I hope you don’t think my excitement's disproportionate! But 4 this oxidizing/reducing agent, I'm fortunate - 👉 bit.ly/2JFRLGr
#365DaysOfScience #biochemistry #scicomm #realtimechem

link to blog version: bit.ly/2NCcrEs