• Question: what is your favourite bit of kit in the lab?

    Asked by rhino645 to Adam, Joanna, Louise S, Louise W, Marcus on 14 Nov 2012.
    • Photo: Adam Paige

      Adam Paige answered on 14 Nov 2012:

      Real-time PCR machines. PCR (polymerase chain reaction) is a technique for making lots of copies of DNA – enough so you can see it using a technique like agarose gel electrophoresis. We use PCR for many things, but one thing I often want to measure is how active a gene is. WHen a gene is switched on it makes RNA. The more it is switched on the more RNA it makes. So if I want to see whether the WWOX gene is switched on or off I can use PCR to measure how much WWOX RNA is inside the cell. And with a real time machine you can get very fast (1-2 hours) and accurate results.

      The technology is much faster, simpler and more reliable now than the machines I used to use when I did my PhD. And when PCR was first invented (before my time!), scientists had to sit next to three water baths set to different temperatures, and every couple of minutes for 3-4 hours they would have to move the tubes of PCR reactions from one water bath to the next. We have come a long way.

    • Photo: Louise Stanley

      Louise Stanley answered on 14 Nov 2012:

      I really like the developer- this is a bit of equipment that we use to develop film that we have exposed to radioactivity, same as you would do for photography, so it has to be done in a dark room as the film is light sensitive (if film gets exposed to light accidently it is completely black when developed so not much use!). The film gets exposed to a developer solution, another to fix it and then a wash in water. I like it as I am always excited to see what comes out the end as before you develop it you have no idea if it has worked or not so it is always a nice surprise when you turn the light on and it has!

    • Photo: Joanna Giles

      Joanna Giles answered on 14 Nov 2012:

      I like something called the whirly mixer! It’s so basic – it’s a little machine on a lab bench that mixes things really quickly – like if you want to dissolve a salt into water. It’s also great at giving hand massages if you just put your hand on it! (Don’t worry, it’s safe!)

    • Photo: Louise Walkin

      Louise Walkin answered on 14 Nov 2012:

      I also really like the whirly-mixer / Vortexer as well!

      I think the centrifuge might be my favourite though! It spins liquids down and collected molecules according to size. The liquid is put in a tube, and spun in a circle very very fast and that causes the component of the liquid, cells etc to be pushed towards the bottom. It is very useful for dividing things up, and is a very quick thing to use. I remember once going on a fairground ride that was like a centrifuge, i didn’t look like one otherwise I wouldn’t have gone on it! It was horrible and I’d never go on one again (haha!), so I don’t think I would like to be centrifuged myself!

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