Category: cell biology

Animal studies may not be reflective of human physiology and results must be taken with caution

May 17, 2024

In the discipline of biomedical engineering and medical studies, there is a tendency to test the efficacy of medical devices or drugs with animals such as mouse, rabbits, and even pigs. This step of the research process is to gather data on the effectiveness of the drugs or medical device in delivering its function. Usually, … More Animal studies may not be reflective of human physiology and results must be taken with caution

High fidelity DNA synthesis and high fidelity DNA polymerase are the drivers of modern synthetic biology

May 17, 2024

DNA synthesis is at the heart of modern synthetic biology because it affords researchers the freedom to design their protein and implement it through specific gene sequence changes at the DNA level. To afford this level of fine control requires high fidelity DNA synthesis technologies and high fidelity DNA polymerase that enable long read high … More High fidelity DNA synthesis and high fidelity DNA polymerase are the drivers of modern synthetic biology

Broad-spectrum antibiotics may be more effective in treating tuberculosis than the current narrow spectrum antibiotics

May 7, 2024

Mycobacteria tuberculosis is an intracellular pathogen, and thus, it is difficult to be eradicated based on current antibiotic therapy where there is insufficient dose of the drug that reach the bacterial cell hiding inside a human cell. Therefore, we can treat the active form of tuberculosis (TB) with an aggressive broad spectrum antibiotic regiment that … More Broad-spectrum antibiotics may be more effective in treating tuberculosis than the current narrow spectrum antibiotics

Glyoxylate cycle is not essential for supporting aerobic growth in bacterial species

April 22, 2024

Aerobic growth brings with it the metabolic byproducts of oxygen mediated reactions. Chief culprit is reactive oxygen species (ROS) that can induce an oxidative stress response. Research has suggested that glyoxylate cycle in many bacteria could help ameliorate oxidative stress in cells, and help provide a conducive environment for aerobic respiration. This suggests that glyoxylate … More Glyoxylate cycle is not essential for supporting aerobic growth in bacterial species

Recap of my research journey (2004 to present)

April 19, 2024

My research journey started in May 2004 with a UROP (Undergraduate Research Opportunities Programme) project on biosorption of copper using local marine seaweed in Prof. Chen Jiaping’s lab at National University of Singapore. Currently, I am working on developing quantitative polymerase chain reaction (qPCR) assay and device for detecting Helicobacter pylori in stomach gastric samples. … More Recap of my research journey (2004 to present)

Gene expression studies inform us of the underlying mechanisms that give rise to an observed phenotype

April 18, 2024

In recent years, gene expression studies have moved into an essential item in many biological studies. Such determination of gene expression pattern could occur at the mRNA or protein level, and helps us understand the molecular underpinnings of certain phenotype at the macroscale. For example, in Escherichia coli cultivated under anaerobic conditions, there is likely … More Gene expression studies inform us of the underlying mechanisms that give rise to an observed phenotype

Secondary antibody in Western Blot is designed to be broad spectrum and gives fluorescence or calorimetric signal to more types of proteins detected by different primary antibodies

April 11, 2024

Western blot can be understood as a narrow spectrum, low throughput gene expression profiling tool at the protein level. In this commonly used assay, primary and secondary antibodies need to be used in conjunction to afford visualisation of specific protein bands on the membrane after transfer from the polyacrylamide gel. In Western blot, the primary … More Secondary antibody in Western Blot is designed to be broad spectrum and gives fluorescence or calorimetric signal to more types of proteins detected by different primary antibodies

Enzymes with broad substrate specificity may still be useful in specific contexts despite leading to undesired biotransformations in biocatalysis and metabolic engineering

April 8, 2024

Biocatalysis and metabolic engineering is built upon pushing carbon flux down a predetermined pathway route to yield a product. This necessarily require the enlistment of enzymes able to perform each step of the metabolic pathway designed. Typically, enzymes enlisted for the task should have narrow substrate specificity to reduce the possibilities of undesired biotransformations generating … More Enzymes with broad substrate specificity may still be useful in specific contexts despite leading to undesired biotransformations in biocatalysis and metabolic engineering

RNA-seq is a label-free, unbiased genome scale transcriptome profiling technique

March 21, 2024

Understanding gene expression pattern of cells in different health and disease conditions have evolved from an academic curiosity 20 years ago into an almost essential aspect of many biological research workflows. The reason is our newfound ability at correlating gene expression pattern with cellular behaviour and phenotype. To this end, one technique stands out amongst … More RNA-seq is a label-free, unbiased genome scale transcriptome profiling technique

Expressing plant genes in yeast provides a platform for expedited elucidation of gene function

March 20, 2024

Plants have a long life cycle that meant months and often years are needed to elucidate gene function and their effect on plant cell physiology. However, the alternative approach of expressing plant genes in yeast provides a useful platform for expediting discovery of novel functions of genes. Specifically, the approach entails the molecular cloning of … More Expressing plant genes in yeast provides a platform for expedited elucidation of gene function