Saturday, March 7, 2015

Killing it


 
Hello and welcome back!

Firstly, I’d like to calmly inform you that…

THE EXPERIMENT WAS A SUCCESS!!!!!!!!!!!!!!! THE CELLS ARE REALLY REALLY DEAD BUT IN A GREAT WAY!!!!!! LOOK AT MY 12 WELL PLATE WITH ALL THE DEAD CELLS IN IT!!!!!!!!!!!

 


 

Ahem.

So, from this experiment we can conclude that the drugs are, in fact, working, which is a good start. This was, however, only tested in one cell line.

This week, I began applying the same experimental conditions to other cell lines with different genetic variables. One of these cell lines (the one with the results above) is especially sensitive to IRF4, while another is not. So, the next experiment will hopefully show the drug’s effect on the one cell line but not on the other. More cell lines are being tested and if the hypothesis hold true in this next experiment, we may be able to answer more questions about those cell lines.

 

So, in preparation for the next experiment, I’ve plated 48 wells of cells via pipette (I’m not sure if you know how much thumb work that requires, but let me just say that challenging me to a thumb war should not be taken lightly) with the placebo and drug. We will be testing the effect of the drug by counting the live cells, for now. Later, we hope to test the mRNA and protein production. We may even throw in a titration of the drug. Who knows? Endless possibilities when it comes to killing myeloma cells.

 

However, there is some bad news. Now, two lines of my cells are dying. It seems there may be a pattern here… I’ve replaced them with fresh cell lines, and hopefully they will live to die in the next experiment.

Regardless, thank you for reading.

Until next week,

Angela

 

5 comments:

  1. My thumb is in similar shape after all of the pipetting I have to do. Are you able to use a multi-channel one or do you only have single-channel pipettes?

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. We have both, but the multi-channel only works for 96 well plates and I've been using 12 well plates so I can test more.
      Thanks for asking.

      Delete
  2. Yeahhh go you! How would you go about testing mRNA and protein production?

    ReplyDelete
  3. So why are some cells more susceptible to the drug than others? And why do cells need a placebo? I thought the placebo effect only applied to people.

    But at least your thumbs will be stronger once you're done. Maybe that'll help you with your new job, pushing those buttons on the cash register ;)

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. Apologies. I meant control, not placebo. And that is ultimately the question of this experiment: why do certain cell lines react to drugs differently?

      Delete