Even though the Howard Hughes summer program is drawing to an end, my project is far from completion. My goal is to reprogram fibroblasts into smooth muscle cells. The first half of the summer was spend on literature research, experimental setup, and cloning CRISPR/Cas9 systems. I designed and cloned 36 gRNAs that target Myocd, and 8 gRNAs that target Elk1. Now I am at the stage of testing my designs. For the past few weeks I have been working on transfecting my CRISPR/Cas9 systems into HEK293 cells to see whether they can activate the expression of Myocd. There are lots of complexities. Lots of time was spent on trouble shooting. However, I enjoy this trouble-shooting experience as much as the smooth progress. Mostly because it’s what I’ve expected for doing research. Also I got to learn the strategies and principles of solving certain problems that I wouldn’t know otherwise. Today I just did my transfection experiment for the third time and I’m excited to see the result. Although I haven’t got any result yet, it feels incredible when I think about how many things I’ve learned during this summer. I used up my very first lab notebook; I have 54 plasmids and 104 primers on my lists; I have 5 boxes of tubes in the freezer. Eventually what this summer experience gives me is way more than a completed project or some data. It is the curiosity I gained towards gene network and regulation, the connections I made with the lab people, the laughter at the lab party, and the start of an exciting research career. Even though I might not be able to finish my project during the summer, I will continue working on them with enthusiasm. To be continued.
