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Search below to delve into the Bitesize Bio archive. Here, you’ll find over two decades of the best articles, live events, podcasts, and resources, created by real experts and passionate mentors, to help you improve as a bioscientist. Whether you’re looking to learn something new or dig deep into a topic, you’ll find trustworthy, human-crafted content that’s ready to inspire and guide you.
The flow cytometer that we have all grown to know and love may have only come into its own in the 1990’s, but who would have known that the first cell sorter was invented as early as the 1950’s? With the recent death of one of the key developers of fluorescence activated cell sorting (FACS),…
Freeze-thaw—you know it’s bad for your samples, don’t you? While working in the lab, you have most likely heard someone say ‘aliquot your protein/cells/DNA/RNA to avoid too many freeze-thaw cycles.’ But do you actually understand why? You probably thought that avoiding freeze-thaw cycles had something to do with damaging cell structure as well as proteins…
Resolve lab obstacles with creative solutions with these non-lab products that can actually be very useful in the lab environment.
The relationship you have with your supervisor during the course of your PhD is a critical one. Like all other personal or professional relationships it can range from being harmonious to disastrous. Choosing a supervisor you think will work well with you in the first place is important, however it can be difficult to foresee…
Every PCR battle is the same: Too little amplification of your target DNA versus too much amplification of off-target DNA. But you can win the PCR battle and amaze your co-workers by mastering the use of PCR additives. PCR additives usually work one of two ways: 1) By reducing secondary DNA structures and thus increasing…
Figures play a central role in science not just as a way of displaying results, although this is obviously important, but also as a way of getting across complicated theories and processes in a relatively simple and direct manner. I’m a firm believe in the power of putting ideas into diagrams and spent a considerable…
“A two photon microscope has higher sensitivity than a normal confocal microscope, because it uses two photos instead of one!” Yes, I can bear witness that this phrase has actually been uttered, and it was not by an undergraduate student. No exception to the rule The condensation of various levels of misunderstandings in this statement…
Ever had a blot so bad it looked like a Rorschach test? We have ten things that might be going wrong with your western blots and how to fix them.
DNA sequencing (PCR, Sanger or next-generation sequencing (NGS)) is a now familiar part of any molecular biology lab. But ‘RNA-seq’, the so-called “Cinderella of genetics”, is now becoming the belle of the ball, providing new insights into this most central molecule of the ‘central dogma’. The many flavors of RNA Whilst genomic DNA is the…
A variety of lab supplies can be purchased off the shelf in your neighborhood, which can save you time and money. Here is a grocery list of items that you can stock your lab with today!
If you remember from one of my previous articles (if not, you can read it here!), we introduced ‘fluorophores’. These are basically substances (natural or synthetic) which have the ability to absorb light at a low wavelength and re-emit at a higher wavelength. In other words- they fluoresce! In this article, I’ll introduce the three…
Buffers are often taken for granted, but they can make or break an experiment. In previous posts, we’ve talked about the wide ranges of buffers available for biological research and the characteristics of a “Good” buffer. Organic buffers are not inert! They can interact with your experimental molecule, or change pH due to changes in…
So you’ve performed a test such as an ANOVA and have found that there is statistical significance in your data (lucky you!), however you now want to know where that significance lies. When you are comparing multiple sets of data it might seem like a logical thought to simply perform an individual t-test between each…
As widely used as it is, isolating RNA remains one of the more finicky protocols. Just about anyone who has performed the technique has their own personal tips and tricks to successfully isolate intact RNA from their samples with consistency. Although RNA can be somewhat unpredictable since it is so labile, there are a few…
The issue of mouse-on-mouse background is only a cause for concern for the histotechnologist working within a research environment. Those working in a diagnostic setting will probably never experience this as they will be working with human tissue with antibodies raised in a variety of species- but one species that won’t be used is human!…
Do you wonder if your favorite protein interacts with another protein? Do you wish that you could shine a spotlight on your protein to determine its binding partner? You can use co-immunoprecipitation (Co-IP) to find your protein’s partner. This article will get you ready for your first Co-IP, provide a handy Co-IP protocol, and discuss…
The great thing about being a scientist is, well… that you get to be a scientist! And it can be fun and rewarding. But being a scientist can be a nasty stressful business too. As I come to a turning point in my ‘academic career’, I find myself making mental notes of the pros and…
Last week I focused on the left-hand side of this diagram and talked about statistical tests for comparing only two datasets. Unfortunately, many experiments are more complicated and have three or more datasets. Different statistical tests are used for comparing multiple data sets. Today I will focus on the right side of the diagram and…
You may already use fluorescence as a tool in your microscopy and imaging work, but, do you know exactly what it is? Why are certain proteins and probes fluorescent? What causes this light emitting property? We’ll have a look at these and more questions in this article. Start with a definition We’ll start with a…
Western blots can be ugly. I mean down-right, horrifically, wall-of-shame ugly. Not only can they be embarrassing to show to your colleagues, but the ugliness can obscure your results, making it impossible to interpret your data. Blotting consists of many experimental steps, which makes the technique naturally error-prone. Although standardized protocols exist, many fail to…
Sometimes a clever little trick for cloning comes along that makes you just give an appreciatory “ahhh.” For me, it was TA cloning. TA cloning is not a new technique (I am showing my advanced laboratory age here), but when I discovered it, the simple elegance of the technique made me pause and wonder about…
Digital PCR (dPCR) is a quantitative PCR method that provides a sensitive and reproducible way of measuring the amount of DNA or RNA present in a sample. This method is similar to qPCR in the reaction assembly components and amplification reaction, but differs in the way the sample target is measured. Digital PCR is a…
Like most things in this world, fluorophores are mortal, and eventually your once bright fluorescent image will inevitably fade to black. This fading or ‘photobleaching’ of fluorescent signal can make imaging difficult, especially if you are trying to take quantitative images. Read below to learn what causes photobleaching of your fluorophores and how best to…
An ELISA (Enzyme-Linked ImmunoSorbant Assay) is a popular assay that uses antibodies and color change to detect proteins, peptides, antibodies or biomolecules in complex mixtures. ELISAs are popular because they are reliable, specific, easy to use, and can easily be scaled up to process multiple samples simultaneously. How an ELISA is Done: In an ELISA,…
So you grab a quick 5 minutes in between lectures to sit down and tackle an item on your to-do list: order a secondary antibody for an upcoming experiment. But when you start to search your favorite secondary antibody provider’s website, you realize it is not going to be a 5 minute job. Conjugated, F(ab’)2…
The first hurdle in learning about statistics is the language. It’s terrible to be reading about a particular statistical test and have to be looking up the meaning of every third word. The type of data you have, the number of measurements, the range of your data values and how your data cluster are all…
We all know that stars are easier to see against the dark background of the night than they are to see against the bright sky of day. Well did you also know that the same may be true of your microscope specimen? Dark field microscopy is a popular microscope technique that makes your unstained transparent…
Every hard-core biologist knows designing the perfect construct can be a complex puzzle to solve. This challenge, if successful, can be extremely satisfying but can also drive you crazy for weeks. Luckily, Dr. Daniel Gibson and his colleagues at the J. Craig Venter Institute designed a new easy-to-use cloning method. Better yet, this system allows…
Over the years, I have noticed that laboratory environments are just as fragile and sensitive as the experiments performed within. If permitted, the lab can deteriorate into a chaotic mess within only a few days. That is why it is crucial to establish an organizational system in the lab. Here are a few of my…
Although his name could fit in easily to the early 1980’s Hip-Hop Scene, Jerzy Nomarski (or ‘George’) was actually a Polish physicist with an interest in optical theory. Born in 1919, he eventually became a member of the Polish Resistance fighting in the Second World War. He was captured by enemy forces and held as…
One of our readers posted the following question to us and we decided to pass it along to everybody’s favorite microbiology expert, Aunt Yersinia: For one year I am working in different research laboratories, after I got from school. I keep wondering why EVERYBODY is using pre-made Agar solutions for pouring plates, and EVERYBODY is…
I remember when I first learned about plagiarism during my undergraduate course. The lecturers were so firm in telling us that if we got caught plagiarizing we would face serious repercussions and that all our work, especially our dissertations, would be vigorously checked by plagiarism detecting software. I was so panicked that I would inadvertently…
While confocal microscopy seems to have become pervasive in cell biology, widefield microscopy techniques still have a special and important place. This month on the Microscopy and Imaging Channel, we’re focusing on widefield microscopy techniques: covering the basics of what these techniques are and when you should turn to them. What is this ‘Widefield’ you…
Bisulfite pyrosequencing is becoming a routine technique in molecular biology labs as a method to precisely measure DNA methylation levels right down to the single base. The technique allows for detailed and high resolution analysis of DNA methylation at specific genomic regions. How to detect the 5th base? Methylation of any of the four nucleotides…
You’re a senior grad student or postdoc, and you’ve done more PCRs than you can count. A new student has joined your lab, and you’ve been charged with training them on PCR. You don’t want to lead him/her astray, but it’s hard to remember the parts that you struggled with in your early days. This…
Phase contrast microscopy is a light microscopy technique which is primarily used to visualise live cells. Using various filters and condensers, the image produced by phase contrast allows us to see greater detail in live cells and can highlight aspects such as intracellular structures. Keep your cells alive! The best way to view cells is…
For those of us who work with Mus musculus or Homo sapiens, to name a couple of species, a few clicks on UCSC Genome Bioinformatics Site or Ensembl gets you the full and precise DNA sequence for any annotated gene in the genome. This luxury is not in place for all species however; many of…
Biologists have long appreciated the complexity of genome organization, but until recently lacked the tools to discern the intricacies of this puzzle. Now, thanks to some handy cross-linking, careful amplification, and (of course!) next generation sequencing, teams from Massachusetts are taking us down the rabbit hole, with some surprising findings from Wonderland. Bend Over Backwards…
Scientific success is often defined by how well your experiments progress and the results you produce. However, scientific research is driven by a curiosity about the unknown, and you cannot always be prepared for the unknown. Inevitably there will come a time when your experiments fail. In this article I give you some of the…
Discover the magic of toluidine blue – a polychromatic dye that changes color depending on which tissue component it is staining.
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