OOOH!

My responsibilities in the lab this week have increased significantly! I'm really excited about the protein determination and gel electrophoresis procedures that Gladys and Elizabeth are showing me, because it means that I will be able to carry out these experiments on my own. I finally feel like I can truly contribute to the day's work instead of just observing all the experiments.
Today I made the gel for the Western Blot. At first Gladys kept an eye on me to make sure that I was mixing the solution for the separating gel and the stacking gel correctly, but once I proved that I was capable of doing this job efficiently, she allowed me to do the next few gels on my own. It makes me feel special to be designated the Official Gel Maker. I also got the opportunity to load different samples of Right Cortex (from the rat brains) protein into the gel compartments. It was a tricky process, but I understood how to do this after a few tries.
Tomorrow I will start making the gel for electrophoresis as soon as I arrive at the lab. It sounds like it will be a busy day tomorrow, so I am looking forward to the other things that I am going to learn.
Gladys has ordered 25 rats for her experiments (to be started in a few weeks), and she says that she will show me the process of performing surgery to inject the metabolites into their brains. I am definitely looking forward to seeing this process. Gladys has also told me that the rats are friendly....no worries, Andrew.