ALBANY, N.Y. (June 9, 2015) — As part of its commitment to training the next generation of RNA scientists, The RNA Institute recently hosted students from two area schools, providing them with hands-on workshops, a tour of the Institute’s facilities, and an opportunity to view a 3-D DNA/RNA simulation. The “RNA Days” are designed to introduce the vast potential of RNA research to young students throughout the Capital Region.
Sixth graders from the Troy Preparatory Charter School visited the Rangan Lab in The RNA Institute at UAlbany’s Life Sciences Research Building on May 26, while local 6th-9th grade students from the Hudson Valley Consortium for homeschoolers visited the Institute on June 4.
In addition to the 3-D simulations, Institute scientists and staff guided the young students to extract DNA/RNA from strawberries and then visualize it using liquid chromatography, a technique used by forensic scientists to create a “fingerprint” that can uniquely identify people.
Participating Institute research scientists included Ken Halvorsen, Gabrielle Todd and Sri Ranganathan, assisted by graduate and post-graduate student volunteers from UAlbany’s Life Sciences Programs.
Hudson Valley Consortium photos by Sweta Vangaveti. Troy Preparatory School photos by Lori Chertoff.
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