Friday 14 March 2014

Protein Skills Straight from the Bench


The study of proteins, their structures, mechanisms and what they do inside our bodies, allows us to better understand many diseases. This knowledge leads to improvements in health and peoples’ lives.

If you're passionate about protein science, the Protein Skills Blog is for you.

In this blog, GE scientists will share their practical insights and tips, to help you to get better results at the bench quicker. Many of the posts will be lessons we have learned through our careers working in research. To add a little spice, we are also running a typical research project, and over the next year, sharing our ups and downs as we aim to understand a protein better.

For our project we have selected the human version of the enzyme dihydrofolate reductase (DHFR); Involved in cell metabolism, DHFR catalyzes the reduction of dihydrofolic acid to tetrahydrofolic acid; one of the steps in the synthesis of purines for the nucleotides adenine and guanine in DNA. Already a popular enzyme for research, this will allow us to compare our results to existing data and also to focus on the techniques used in its study.

Unlike with reading a research paper, we will try and expose you to the research as it happens in “real time”; at every stage of the experiment giving you insight and knowledge you can apply in your own studies. We’ll share our successes (and challenges!) with the hope you can improve your skills through reading about our experiences. 


Maybe you can even help us along the way – please share your thoughts, contribute your tips or ask questions using the comment/contact fields. At GE we’re dedicated and experienced professionals in the field of protein research and we hope we can help. After all, one of the best ways to improve your skills is by sharing and discussing your experience with others.

Lets get started!

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