Saturday DNA! Sessions

Plasmids are small pieces of bacterial DNA containing specialized genes that can help bacteria survive in adverse conditions. With molecular scissors called restriction enzymes, scientists can create synthetic plasmids that are used to genetically engineer bacteria to make human proteins such as insulin. Join us to explore how scientists cut and paste DNA molecules to create custom plasmids.

Participants will:

• use restriction enzymes to digest plasmids;

• analyze plasmid restriction maps to predict the digestion results; and

• visualize the results through gel electrophoresis.

Did you know that half the cells in your body aren’t human cells at all? Inside your body is a diverse ecosystem of living things (mostly bacteria) called the human microbiome. These living things depend on you, but you also depend on them! Where do they live? What happens if they die? And what can we learn by studying them? Join us to answer these questions and learn more about one of the hottest topics in human health.

Participants will:

• use puzzle pieces to imitate how scientists map the human microbiome;
• analyze real-life microbiome barcoding data to solve a fictional patient’s mysterious illness; and
• learn about probiotics and even try a couple (non-alcoholic kombucha and kimchi).

Do you have the skills to be a real life forensic detective? Join us to learn how to analyze the small, and often microscopic particles left behind at crime scenes called trace evidence. First, investigate a “crime scene” to find possible evidence and put your lab skills to the test! Can you solve the case before the clock strikes 12?

Participants will:

• identify and evaluate evidence left at a “crime scene”;
• process and analyze fingerprints & trace evidence; and
• explore how DNA can be used to help solve crimes.

In 2009, 24 year-old New York Post reporter Susannah Cahalan was struck by a debilitating and rare disease. The physical and mental symptoms impacted her so significantly that she became nearly unrecognizable to her coworkers, family, friends, and even herself. After spending over a month in the hospital receiving treatment for what was first diagnosed as bipolar disorder, it was determined that her symptoms were being caused by a rare form of autoimmune encephalitis. Brain on Fire: My Month of Madness is a memoir about Cahalan's time in the hospital through the lens of her friends and family.

Read the book and join other readers to talk about this fascinating story, and how scientists are working to better understand this disease, and others like it.

Participants will:

• create a model to understand the normal function of antibodies in the immune system, and in diseases like autoimmune encephalitis;
• discuss Cahalan's memoir (it is suggested that participants read the book prior to the session); and
• learn about research at Cold Spring Harbor Laboratory on this rare disease.

In the fall of 1991, two hikers in the Ötztal Alps came upon the mummified remains of a 5,300-year-old man. Now preserved in a climate-controlled freezer at the South Tyrol Museum of Archaeology, Ötzi's body and accompanying artifacts provide a window into life in Europe during the Copper Age. The mummy also provided a number of medical surprises. Although we think of Lyme disease as a new phenomenon that originated in Connecticut, Ötzi was infected with the Lyme disease microbe. His diet was filled with unprocessed, natural foods, yet he suffered from atherosclerosis. Most mysteriously, Ötzi died from an arrow shot to the back—his murderer had followed him up to the 10,200-foot pass where his body was found. How do scientists know all of these things? Join us to explore some of the interesting forensic techniques that have been used to understand more about the Iceman’s life and death.

Participants will:

• view a 3D model of Ötzi the Iceman;
• use a computer activity to simulate how scientists and historians from different fields came together to study the Iceman; and
• gather evidence from different departments of research and interpret the results to answer some of the mysteries surrounding Ötzi.

Organisms, such as humans, are made up of cells. Some of the most important molecules in cells are DNA and proteins. Cells rely on these molecules to execute very precise and controlled actions, just like we drive cars to move from one place to another. Have you ever wondered what the different “cars” look like in cells, how they work, and why their abundance is important? Join us to learn more about the real-life 3-D structures of proteins and DNA that are life’s building blocks and see for yourself!

Participants will:

• learn how scientists discover what molecules look like;
• use computer software to visualize 3-D molecules (proteins and DNA);
• observe molecule functions and explore the relationship between molecular structure and function; and
• experimentally measure protein abundance using colorimetric copper-sulfate-based test, whose variations are important in health and disease.