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Fighting cancer with strawberries
Wil, CH Biology student Anja Michael is working in synthetic biology and is introducing the field to elementary school students.
Anja Michael is a 23 year old student from Rossrüti studying biology at ETH Zurich. She is trying to spread her love of science to elementary school children.
Anja Michel shows Grade 3 students from Kirchplatz how to extract strawberry DNA.
Extracted strawberry DNA
The "international Genetically engineered machine" (iGEM) competition is a competition for students in the field of synthetic biology. With the support of PhD students and professors, the team from ETH Zurich consisting of six students is participating this year. For their project, they aim to genetically manipulate E. coli bacteria to produce green fluorescence when in contact with cancer cells. Using this, it would be possible to test for cancer in blood samples from patients in about five hours. It is already possible to detect cancer cells in human blood, but current methods are very expensive. With their project, the biology students want to develop a less expensive alternative.
Inspired by her "super biology teacher", Anja Michel started to like science at the "Kantonsschule" in Wil. After completing her matura in 2009, she started studying music in Basel, then did an internship at the cantonal hospital in Winterthur. In 2011, she returned to biology and started to study at ETH Zurich. After completing her Bachelor degree, she went to Brazil for another internship. She is now back in Switzerland working on a Master's degree. Last Thursday, she visited the "Kirchplatz" school in Wil.
Microbiology and Immunology
"Biology is so interesting because it explains all life," says Anja Michel. Biology is a very broad subject whose various subfields all appeal to her. "It turns out that the more you learn about a topic, the less you feel like you know about it. For every door you close, ten more open." She had to pick only one topic for her Master's studies, so she chose to specialize in Microbiology and Immunology: "the smaller, the better." Microbiology is the study of organisms that cannot be seen with
the naked eye, such as viruses and bacteria. Immunology, on the other hand, is the study of the immune system: the body's own defences against pathogens. Her studies drew Anja Michel to the iGEM project (see box).
DNA is everywhere
Deoxyribonucleic acid (DNA) is a biomolecule present in every living organism. It is the carrier of genes, known colloquially as hereditary predispositions. Thus, DNA is a part of humans, animals and plants. We carry DNA, we are permanently surrounded by it and we even eat it. DNA can be engineered as well, leading to modifications in molecules, cells, or organisms to generate new biological properties. This field of
biology is called "synthetic biology". Anja Michel wishes that the public knew more about and was more accepting of the field. She explains: "even though you are changing some parts of the DNA, it still is DNA." She and the rest of iGEM her team are trying to pass this on to primary school children. On Thursday, July 2 she and two teammates visited the Grade 3 class at the Kirchplatzschulhaus in the old town of Wil. "Children should be more open to the subject since they have not become prejudiced against it yet," states Anja Michel. This is why researchers actively try to seek access to the public to teach science through children via classroom visits and other activities.
Experiments on strawberries
The 23-year-olds started by explaining the composition of a cell and the function of DNA to the class. On a blackboard, they helped the children label the parts of a cell and explain their function. After an introductory lesson on the theory of DNA and a demonstration of a simple experimental protocol, the children performed an experiment themselves (pictured above). A strawberry was mixed with water, salt and soap and put into a plastic bag and crushed. The resulting red liquid was poured through a sieve into a plastic beaker. After addition of alcohol, DNA separated from the rest of the liquid and could be taken out of the beaker with a toothpick
(pictured on the left). Obviously, the children enjoyed the experiment and they all completed it successfully. Maybe visits like this can lay the foundation to inspire these students to pursue science in the future.