I always start my day with coffee. After waking up in the morning and before arriving to lab, I drink a cup of coffee to prepare myself for the day. Once in lab, I go to my bench and create a to-do list to make sure I don’t miss anything that needs to be done (shout out to Jonny for that tip). After that, I get to work.
Depending on the day and what point I am at in the project, I do different things.
I might streak out yeast strains for single colony purification.
I might be picking individual colonies of yeast to grow overnight for a genomic prep or for a fluctuation assay.
I might do a follow a yeast transformation protocol to knock out a specific gene.
I might use prong plating to isolate mutants, and then replica plate them onto selection plates to get individual colonies.
I might do a genomic prep to isolate the DNA in order to use it in a PCR.
I might run a PCR to amplify DNA for sequencing or to check that the gene I want to knock out really has been knocked out. I’ll make sure I’m signed up to use on of the machines, grab a bucket of ice and defrost the things I need for the master mix. Then I combine everything and put 25 or 15 microliters (depending on what the PCR is for) into each well of the PCR plate.
I might run an electrophoresis gel to confirm the PCR.
I might purify the PCR product using a Thermo Scientific PCR Purification Kit.
I might combine the DNA (marked with a sort of “bar code” of DNA during the PCR) and measure the DNA contents before walking to the Biological Sciences building to send it off for sequencing.
I might be plating cells for fluctuations assays, or counting hundreds of individual colonies.
Of course, there’s the not-so-glamorous side of research too. Some days I might autoclave test tubes that I need to run my overnight cultures, or make and pour a few liters of a specific plate that I need to use.
All in all, I just try to make efficient use of my time and do what needs to be done. When the sequencing results get back, I’ll be able to start analyzing the data!
