May 2024

Pipette

Lincoln-West Updates

Molecular biology mania! 

Over the course of the year, students worked weekly with Rise Up volunteers from Case Western Reserve University, Cleveland Clinic, and Cleveland State to carry out high level experiments. This month projects wrapped up at both Garrett Morgan School of Engineering and Innovation and Lincoln West School of Science and Health. Students dissected their organisms, and extracted DNA, RNA, or protein for molecular analyses. There were some striking results found in the molecular data! 

At Lincoln-West, our group of students studying how CBD impact social behaviors using hermit crabs extracted DNA from the organisms. The hermit crab genome has not been sequenced, so no knowledge is available to know what genes are in the animals or how they might respond to CBD treatment. It has been reported in other animals that CBD can influence the gene Syn1, which is involved in synaptic remodeling. This group used multiple PCR primers designed to flank the Chinese mitten crab Syn gene, the closest related species with an annotated genome, to attempt to clone this gene from hermit crabs. They were successful in amplifying DNA using these primers! Other groups used kits to isolate RNA or Western blots to look at protein expression.

The school year at Lincoln-West is coming to an end in the middle of June. We will soon have student submissions to the Journal of Young Scientists where you can read more about their research.

Caffeine Critters Western blot

Garrett Morgan Updates 

Garrett Morgan had their last day of class on Wednesday, May 28th so it was a whirlwind end to the school year for these students! They finished up the molecular assays in their projects and presented results the very next week. 

At Garrett Morgan, we had several groups look at the levels of specific proteins in the brains of their animal models. Students studying the impact of CBD on appetite dissected the brains from their fruit flies, isolated proteins, and ran an SDS-PAGE gel to separate proteins based on size before using a Western blot to see if there were differences in the amount of allatostatin C, a protein that regulates food intake. Groups interested in caffeine and addiction using earthworms performed similar experiments to look at the levels of serotonin transporters in the ganglia of earthworms. 

All of this work was featured at our 2024 Young Scientist Symposiums at Lincoln-West and Garrett Morgan.

2024 Young Scientist Symposiums

Students in our Life as a Scientist program were able to present results from their research at two Young Scientist Symposiums held in May at Lincoln-West and Garrett Morgan! These events are a way for students to present in front of their peers, teachers, families, Rise Up volunteers, and community members. We had 26 presentations spread between the two events. Some of the topics included seasonal depression, antibiotic resistance, CBD, Alzheimer’s, and cigarette smoke. After each presentation students fielded questions about their research from attendees. The results that groups presented included real world implications for us all and derived from student-led ideas and research. 

These were very festive affairs with snacks, drinks, and an opportunity to watch short videos, which can be viewed on our website, highlighting the research that was conducted at both schools. It was a joy to see the students present confidently and to receive positive feedback from event attendees. Many of the students have never done any public speaking, so this was an opportunity for them to work on an extremely valuable skill. The met the challenge head on! 

Students are now focused on finalizing their manuscripts for publication in the 2024 Journal of Young Scientists. All of the research conducted in these projects will be published and made available in print and online. While you are waiting for your copy of the journal, you can read the 2023 edition free online!

Lincoln-West Symposium