S-STEM Scholar Kristi Morrison's Blog

   Why did you choose a STEM field? What interests you about STEM fields?     I chose to pursue a degree in Environmental Science because I am passionate about protecting nature. I grew up playing in the dirt and swimming in the Mississippi River so I have been naturally drawn to the outdoors. I have lived and worked in some very biodiverse places and I am motivated to preserve our plants and animals for generations to come. I like that I have a lot of flexibility in STEM fields. I can work in policy, education, research labs, non-profits and government positions. I really like science and math classes as well. They are challenging but rewarding. 

The extraction of G6PD was performed by centrifuging 100 ml of seven different bacteria; Deinococcus indicus, Deinococcus radiodurans, Deinococcus caeni, Deinococcus pimensis, Deinococcus hopiensis, Deinococcus grandis, Deinococcus metalli. We then resuspend the cell pellets in 500 ul extraction buffer. The extraction buffers keep G6PDH enzyme in an active state. Next, we put the tubes in Fisher Scientific BeadMill and ran the device for four rounds at 5 m/sec for 90 seconds, with a 1 minute ice bath in between each round. We ended with transferring the supernatant to a new Eppendorf tube with 200ul pipette.

This week I made 8 250ml TGY media. 7 different bacteria were inoculated at 28 degrees celsius. They were then placed in the incubator shaker for 24 hours.  Cell culture growth was measured at 600nm absorbance. I used the spectrometer to make sure the bacteria had a 0.1 absorbance. This step was taken to ensure that the bacteria was in their exponential growth phase.

Last week in lab myself and other S-STEM scholars were working with a protein known as Deinococcus Radioduran- 0172 lactonase to perform a gel electrophoresis. Our first step in the process was making an Agrose gel.  We then poured in a  TAE buffer.  After mixing our DR-0172 with a blue tracking dye, the gel electrophoresis is ready to separate the DNA, RNA and proteins. The experiment was successful as you can see from the band being illuminated under a uv light.