pursuing my passion <3
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Reflections
This is where I record all my reflections for the activities I have done in GATE Biology lessons.
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Win-win MeePork Farm
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This is our first class activity. We had to build this farm which represents our cell by pasting all the necessary components on the correct pathway. It is quite fun to work as a group and well.. carry out things that are not conventional. This is our first GATE-Biology lessons and I am glad that through this activity I get to interact and know more about my classmates! :D It does help me in refreshing my memory. Through this, I have learnt that I am rather weak in my concepts for cell structures especially lysosomes.
EM Quiz
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Ms Soh gave us a worksheet with diagrams of cell structures viewed under the electron microscope. It is fun doing it as it is challenging for most of the questions asked is outside of our syllabus. For example, one question showed a picture of the structure of flagella, which is not covered in our syllabus. It also challenges my view on cells as I initially thought that all cells are similar (except for those specialized cells. Then, i realise this is not the case. For example, cells that secretes proteins will be abundant in rER.
Lipid Presentation
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Today we had a presentation surrounding the theme "lipids". The topic is "Asian Lifestyle - The Hotbed for Health Issues" and my group comprising of me, Jia Jie and Evan has chosen liposuction for our presentation! I have learnt a lot through researching about liposuction such as the white fat cells and brown fat cells. Also, I have learnt how to use Prezi (yes, this is my first time using it, don't be surprised x)) Along the way, I have got closer to my classmates too! (:
Also, I have learnt a lot from groups presenting on other topics such as Ba Kwa (relating to trans fats) and so on.

Lastly, I'll never do liposuction! (The videos are quite disgusting :x)

This is the link to the Prezi presentation:
http://prezi.com/_a9hrtx_itsq/lipids-liposuction/
Colour-Changing Milk

Today Ms Soh performed a magic trick with milk, food colouring, cotton swab and detergent! This is the first time I have seen this experiment so I am awed by it, haha!
Ms Soh poured the milk into a plastic container and she added 3 drops of food colouring (blue, red and green). Then, she made one of us dip the cotton swab into the detergent and place it on the surface of the milk. And so..
TAADAA~~~
The milk started swirling and the food colouring is escaping from the cotton swab. It IS quite amazing! This is because of the hydrophobic and hydrophilic property of the detergent and the fats found in milk. I think that it is very creative to conduct such a experiment out of ingredients that can be easily found in the kitchen. It will be one of my tricks to amaze little kids next time, haha. I regret not taking pictures of this activity :(
Who stole my Biopod? - Food Test

Today we had our lab session. We did this activity investigating who stole Sheng Yang's ipod. We mashed up the beans, bread, rice and what not and conducted food tests on them. The process of conducting food tests helped me in familiarizing with how to go about carrying out food tests on solid food and not solely liquid. And it turns out that Evan the Dragon Master has stolen Sheng Yang's Biopod! The cleaning up part is well.. messy haha. The soggy food stuff and quite disgusting, eww!
Peer Marking on Cell Structure Quiz

Previously we did this question on "Which organelle in the cell is the best organelle in your opinion?" and this time round Ms Soh let us look at each other's answer and comment on it. It is quite fun reading what other people wrote (and also recognising whose handwriting is whose!) We had to grade our peers' work by giving them 1 to 3 stars and I think I am quite harsh on my peers' work hehe. I hope that no one will bear grudges against me! x)
Construction of Pencil-ase and protein activity!
Today we had fun constructing proteins using pipe cleaners to transport pencil from one table to another! I took a lot of pictures this time so yay, I shall put a slide show on today's activity. We discussed on why it is advantageous to have a single protein subunit or more than one. And most importantly, WE HAD FUN! Samuel's group constructed this wriggly curly thing that looks like a spider while Adeline transported the pencil by tying a knot around the pencil, it is like a play session!
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Then, we constructed proteins by following the instruction using a protein kit. All of us finished it quite early and so we played around with the pipe cleaners again. Through this activity, we learnt more about how a protein is constructed and the significance of amino acid residues in influencing the tertiary/quaternary structure of a protein. I hope we have more sessions like this! (:
Carbohydrates Presentation - Honey
Today we had presentation on the same topic, "Asian Lifestyle - the Hotbed of Health Issues". Me and Evan formed a group and we had chosen honey as our theme! Honey is traditionally used in certain Asian cuisines as a natural sweetener such as a Indian religious-related drink called "Panchamrita". I found out that honey is not as beneficial as how the business/companies claimed. It is indeed beneficial, but it is not that significant in my opinion. I have also learnt that some diabetes patients have this misconception that honey is not a type of sugar and hence they do not control their intake of honey, which might be fatal to their health condition. I hope that more people will be aware of this!​
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This is the link to our presentation slides:​
Online Discussion on a-keratin

On Good Friday night, the whole Biology-GATE students and teacher had a discussion on Whatsapp on alpha-keratin. I did some prior research before that and found out that a-keratin is found not only in hair, but also on nails, which is cool because they are of different hardness. I have also learnt more about how straightening and curling of hair works by disrupting the disulphide bonds between the a-chains of hair and reconnecting them at different location. I once heard that the cross-section of curvy hairs are less round than those with straight hair, I wonder if it is true? Overall, I had learnt a lot more about alpha-keratin and hair.
​Discussion on Collagen
Today we had a discussion on collagen (and we Miss Soh gave us Vitagens with collagen content yay!). Collagen is promoted as an anti-ageing miracle by food producers and skincare product sellers. People even inject collagen into their skin in hope for a younger look and so on. This is linked to pseudo-science which is increasingly common nowadays. I think that people should be taught how to differentiate and identify the twisted or hidden truths so that we will not get tricked so easily.
Pig's Liver BOMB!

Today, we had a very fun practical session! To relate to the topic that we are learning now (which is Enzymes), we learnt about how catalase, a biological catalyst, which are present in pig's liver catalyses the hydrogen peroxide. To create the bombs, we poured some hydrogen peroxide solution into a small plastic tube with cover, place a small piece of raw pig's liver in, cover it and leave it on the ground. The catalase in pig's liver catalyses hydrogen peroxide, forming water and oxygen in the process. When oxygen produced exceeds the capacity of the small plastic tube, it explodes! This activity can be seen from the short video posted on the right.
Seminar on Membrane Structure and Function - Aquaporins

Today, we did a presentation on Aquaporins. Aquaporins is a water channel found abundant in human liver. It exist as a tetramer and it is a integral protein found in the cell membrane. We also built a 3D membrane structure using environmentally friendly materials to demonstrate how the proteins, cholesterol and lipids are arranged in the membrane.

Lastly, we did a presentation on the function and characteristics of Aquaporins. I have learnt a lot more about Aquaporins and its role in our body.
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The Prezi link can be found here: http://prezi.com/wnb5cggiflvb/aquaporins-role-of-aquaporins-in-the-human-body/
DNA Structure and Replication - Case Study

We, the GATE-Bio class combined with the SMTP classes during Biology lessons to carry out case studies on the topic of DNA Structure & Replication. We got to learn more about DNA replications done in the lab (PCR - Polymerase Chain Reaction) , which are used together with gel electrolysis to identify criminals in CSI cases.
It is indeed an insightful experience as we get to interact with the SMTP peers and observe what they usually do during their lessons. I think that I should be more outspoken and participate more actively during discussion in front of people that I am not familiar with.
Modelling and Presenting our DNA Structure

This time round, the GATE-Bio people are given a lesson to construct a DNA structure that can demonstrate replication in groups and to present to these models constructed in front of the SMTP peers.

Evan and I have decided to use magnets sticks to demonstrate DNA replication, with different colours representing the different bases and the SMTP peers were rather fascinated by our structure. They have also given constructive feed back such as maybe we should include the enzymes and proteins that are involved in DNA replication such as topoisomerase and helicase. Overall, I think this is a good platform for me to practise presenting to the crowd as well as familiarise myself with the process of DNA replication.
Case Study on Cell & Nuclear Division - Mitosis & Meiosis

This is the second case study session we have with our SMTP peers. This time round, we are more relaxed than the previous case study as we got to know each other better. We are required to construct a graph with the relevant diagrams of different mitotic and meiotic phase of a cell as well as writing the other answers on a mahjong paper. My group's mahjong paper turns out to be quite eye catching as we used different colours and it is neat as well. The attached picture on the right is my group's "product".

We also get to learn things outside our syllabus such as the presence of chimera which is an organism with 2 different sets of DNA existing within the body as well as the abundance of polyploid cells in our liver. It is indeed a very interesting session.
Cell & Nuclear Division Practical - Root tip Squash

Today, we did our very own root tip squash for practical on cell and nuclear division. We cut of the root tip of the onion, drop a few drops of hydrochloric acid to soften the root. Then, we dry and stain the root tip with dye and then chop it lightly into few slices using the scalpel on the microscopic slide then squash it using the plastic slid.

This allows us to observe the cells of the onion root that are undergoing mitotic stages. I managed to do a rather successful microscopic slide as the cells are not overlapping hence I am satisfied. I think that this is a very fun activity and it should definitely be incorporated into the next batches' GATE-Bio practicals. This hones our practical skills that are not likely tested in SPA and it has indeed benefited me. I have never thought that root tip squash can be prepared in this way.
Eukaryotic Gene Expression Lectures

We had a chance to join the other peers who takes Biology in their lectures for this topic. The lectures were rather interesting as the lecturer engages the students with demonstration of mRNA translation using stickers and cute paper-printed images. However, I do not think that lectures suits me as I do not really understand the topic even after the lecturer has gone through the whole topic page by page. Different people have their individual learning styles and I have realised that lectures are not as effective for me as compared to classes with smaller class size such as the GATE-Biology class which consist of only 12 people. I am glad that I have taken up the GATE-Biology programme as we do not usually attend lectures.
Eukaryotic Gene Expression Activity - Translation of insulin mRNA

We went through a discussion on the translation of insulin mRNA in class. We were given a long strip of paper with the gene sequence of insulin in the form of nitrogenous bases as well as the protein in codes for these codons. We are to identify the start and stop codon. It has better helped me understand the translation process as this hands on activity helps me to clarify my doubts through asking my group mate and tutor. It was a rather short activity, but it is fun!
Presentation on Eukayotic Gene Expression

This time round I worked with Evan to present on the control (silencing or promoting) of certain genes by means such as histone ethylation, methylation, promoter, inhibitor and so on. It is a 20-minutes long presentation. I realise that it is rather difficult to engage the audiences (in this case my fellow classmates) and being a teacher not an easy task. It is probably because they are tired on that day but I feel a bit discouraged then. I should really improve on my audience-engaging skills.
Organisation of the Eukaryotic Genome- Telomere

Miss Soh assigned an online homework as our June holidays homework. We are given links to read up more on telomeres. The websites are listed below:
http://learn.genetics.utah.edu/content/begin/traits/telomeres/
http://www.nature.com/news/2010/101128/full/news.2010.635.html
http://www.scientificamerican.com/article.cfm?id=anti-aging-pill-targets-telomeres

From the first article, I have learnt that shortening of telomere isn't the only factor contributing to aging. In fact, other factors such as oxidative stress, glycation and chronological age plays a much bigger role in contributing to the death of old people. Besides, I think it is rather innovative of them to measure the length of the telomere of red blood cells instead of other cell types as red blood cells are replaced every 3-4 months hence it possesses much less impact on the subjects. Furthermore, there are certain cells such as heart muscle cells that do not divide continually hence they are not suitable for testing. The article used very interesting comparison such as "It is like someone who paints himself into a corner and cannot paint the corner." to explain end replication problem, making it more easily understood.

The second article is on an experiment which tested on the absence of telomerase in mice. They reported that after telomerase is reactivated, the brain of these mice grew larger. I wonder if the reactivation of telomerase is tested on human (particularly those with Alzheimer Disease), will the memory lost along with the death of brain cells be regained again. How the brain functions and goes about storing memory is still not completely understood yet and I hope that I can contribute to the development of this field in the future!

The third article writes about this supplement which can potentially activate telomerase, preventing ageing from occuring. However, I feel the best way to prevent ageing is still to maintain a healthy lifestyle, as the last line on the article suggests. As this supplement has yet been tested, we do not really know the long-term side-effects hence it is better to avoid these drugs.