Results

The main focus of this week has been Western Blot readings. Last week we started several Western Blots which finished on Monday. After adding the antibodies and putting on the final touches, they were ready to read. In order to read a Western Blot, an imaging machine is needed. This machine uses extremely sensitive luminescence detectors to view the proteins on the membranes. Although a Western Blot may be completely finished, the naked eye cannot see the protein markings. This is why the imagery machine is a central part of the Western Blot process. The imagery machine prints a copy of the test that has visible results. This printed copy includes the different proteins in the tested tissue. These proteins are sorted by weight and identified using marker proteins that have a known presence and weight.

Aside from Western Blot readings, the graduate student that I work under in the lab has been searching for an ultra-centrifuge. A typical centrifuge is not capable of holding more than a few milliliters of liquid and has a relatively low rotation speed. On the other hand, an ultra-centrifuge can hold about 50 milliliters in each tube and has an extremely high rotation speed. There are several ultra-centrifuges in the College of Pharmacy but none of them are functional. The parts needed to repair these ultra-centrifuges are only sold by specialized vendors and are very expensive. This has been a roadblock to the research because an ultra-centrifuge is required to start further tests. Earlier this week, we were able to order a new rotor which will get the research up and running again.