#pipette tip box

[shroomsnail]

no matter where i am, if i have to do any type of writing under pressure from an upcoming deadline, i WILL preferentially clean or organise the space in which i am currently existing.

[notebook-enthusiast]

i can be so normal about people sharing my workspace ❤️ it's totally fine if you move everything i had carefully organized and leave a mess ❤️ i will not get upset ❤️

[softlights-citylights]

covalently bonded

lab partner!kuroo x f!reader headcannons

content warning none really. kuroo makes bad chemistry jokes. characters are in university. fem pronouns used.

wc 599

m.list

on her first day in her chemistry class, everyone is assigned a lab partner and she just so happens to be paired up with Kuroo

at first, he seems weird and a little cocky

she soon finds out that Kuroo has a good reason to be. he's incredible at chemistry; its like second nature to him

he would try to find her during the lecture that paired with the lab. after spotting her in her usual seat, he would slide into the row behind her and tap her on the shoulder. Kuroo would make it a point to sit there every week and slide her notes during lecture

if she fell asleep, he would take notes for her and make a copy to give to her the next time they met

when he realizes that he likes his lab partner's company, he would drag things out. he would try to be the last group to leave the lab, just so he could get some alone time with her

if she isn't good at chemistry, Kuroo would be incredibly patient. offering to tutor her outside of class, when it was really just an excuse to spend more time with her. he would make sure that he executed every aspect of the lab perfectly, ensuring that she got good grades too

if she is good at chemistry, he would compete with her. he'd try to do more during lab, insisting that he had the experience when they were both in their second semester of college. Kuroo would make terrible chemistry puns at her and cackle at his own jokes even if she didn't laugh

he would ask for her number under the guise of helping each other with the lab reports.

Kuroo insists on working on the lab report together, even though they are graded separately. he just wants an excuse to spend more time with her.

while reactions ran, Kuroo would chat with her about anything under the sun. if they were doing pcr or waiting for a gel to finish running, he would lose track of time while talking to her.

if they were doing something a little more hands on, Kuroo would hover around her.

if her hands were full and her safety glasses began sliding down her face, Kuroo would carefully push them up with the clean part of his glove

run out of pipette tips? he's already got a new box

cant get the clamps to close? his hands are over hers, all too eager to help.

need new samples to run in the spectrophotometer? he's already started cleaning the cuvette and loading the next sample

cant get the data to show results? Kuroo would send a spreadsheet of all his excel data with little notes to help her understand his work

on the last day of lab, Kuroo would wish her luck on finals in the most nerdy way possible: by giving her a note that corresponded with elements on the periodic table for her to decipher

university has a funny way of bringing people together and pushing them apart, and he didn't want to risk falling out of her company. he wanted to make his feelings known, just in case they never saw each other again

he's well aware of how nerdy and lame he's being, but he says it anyways

Kuroo confesses with a drawing of a heart around a water molecule, saying, "it's kind of like us, we're covalently bonded"

m.list

a/n ive had this idea in my head for a while. i graduated with a degree in biochem recently and lemme just say this shit is so unrealistic. everyone wants to get the fuck out of lab asap. i was imagining an biochemistry lab with mostly bench work

[foxscarf]

3.11.23

Weekend is here! 🍂✨

Had quite a relaxed work day, but I still made progress on my project, and on deciding about my next one. I'm feeling good that I now fully understand the lab work I'll be doing in the next few weeks. And I'm pleased that I'm starting to practice having a work life balance! 🍁📚🌳🎒

(featuring my tiny desk plant Renée who lives in a pipette tip box)

23/100 days of productivity

[wing-ed-thing]

A Perfect μl (Kabuto x Reader)

Synopsis: Always pitted against each other, everything became a competition. Despite how seamlessly you worked together, you were always looking out for number one.

Word Count: 1.5k

Tags/Warnings: @kakashiswilloffire​ Canon Typical Violence, Original Animal Summon​, Language

Notes: μl means microliter which is 1 millionth of a liter!

A single, defining moment of your childhood stood out to you vividly.

You stood with your back straight, a smug look on your face as you held your slide out in front of you. Kabuto rolled his eyes, hands behind his back as he waited patiently for Orochimaru to check his work. The snake Sannin tsked at you; the slow shake of his head made you retreat the slightest bit into yourself.

“C’mon now, that’s no way to handle a sample,” he chided, and you placed the slide on the lab bench in defeat. Orochimaru picked up the 1 microliter pipette and swiped up your water sample completely with a single motion of his hand. He held the pipette up, studying the tip and the amount of liquid gathered in it. “See this line? That is about where the liquid should be for there to be one microliter.”

Orochimaru frowned and pipetted the drop back onto the slide. Discarding the tip, Orochimaru approached Kabuto’s sample. Kabuto squared his shoulders back, the expression on his face painted in smug self-assuredness as Orochimaru checked his pipetting job. The Sannin hummed in approval.

“See?” he held the tip up for you to see. “That is a perfect microliter.” 

As he pipetted the droplet back, you and Kabuto locked gazes, doomed to a life of eternal competition. Looking back, it was what Orochimaru wanted. Whether he wanted for the both of you to have the incentive to improve or if it was just a sick game at vying for his attention, it worked, even well into your adulthood.

Sirens blared in the night sky as Kabuto heard boots on the ground. He pivoted, looking up at the large tower that now lit up red. He gritted his teeth as a window burst twenty stories up, summoning smoke bursting out along with the broken glass. Your large animal summon glided through the air on extended ribs, taking off like a dragon as it eclipsed the night sky. 

Kabuto slapped his hand over his face, tightening the package he had secured under his left arm before he continued to run. He maneuvered around rows of cargo boxes, hoping that by sheer speed, he could escape before the enemy even mobilized. 

His hopes had been too lofty as a whole squad of troops swung around the corner. Kabuto’s knuckles were packed to the brim with kunai, and with one motion of his wrist, he took them all out as he continued on his way. He didn’t get too far before he was met with a counterstrike. 

The whirring of shuriken flying through the air was all it took for instinct to take over. He tucked himself into a roll, just barely avoiding the flying weapons as he ducked around another shipping container. Kabuto glanced up, noting the shadows that ran above him. On the lower ground, he was at a steep disadvantage. 

He rounded the corner, sliding a bit too far at his own velocity. His right hand hit the ground in an attempt to steady himself as he continued to run down the aisle. Kabuto’s eyes darted to his right and then his left as he mentally tried to calculate the compound's border. 

The alarms continued to blare in the background. An incessant ringing sounded as more and more of the enemy joined in the hunt for the thief in the night. 

Kabuto continued to run, his chest heaving and his heart pounding as he scrambled toward the hole in the fence the two of you had cut earlier in the night. But as he rounded the next set of cargo boxes, he was met with a dead end. Kabuto checked over his shoulder from out of his peripheral as he cursed to himself. 

In that instant, the light from the moon disappeared. Kabuto’s eyes widened the second he saw the shadow, and immediately dove to the ground. A flash of light sparked across the atmosphere, a horrible screeching of lighting jutsu filling the air with a cloud of grey smoke. 

You performed a double-dismount off of your summon, and when Kabuto’s head rose again, half of the enemy troops had been incapacitated. Kabuto scrambled to his feet and stalked toward you. You walked toward him, seeming not to have a care in the world even as panicked shouts resounded behind you. Your animal summon disappeared with a poof. His eye twitched, a few choice words already at the tip of his tongue.

Kabuto readjusted his grip on the bound box in his hand. You slapped your hand to its opposite side as he held the package up. It was instantly sealed away into a tattoo on your arm. The image of the box appeared on the back of one of your inked geckos. The little ink lizard traveled up your arm and under your sleeve. 

A volley of kunai sailed straight toward your back, each one falling out of the air with a quick release of your lightning power. The electricity sent a small shock into Kabuto’s palm as you gave him a swift high-five. He recoiled, running past you to take on the enemies to his front. You kept an eye on the figures on top of the shipping containers that hadn’t gone down. 

You worked seamlessly, despite your vastly different fighting styles. With his hands free, Kabuto moved acrobatically throughout the organized squadrons, chakra scalpels making precise and deadly cuts. Meanwhile, you covered the battlefield in a smokescreen. Electricity burst from you in jagged lines, causing bright explosions to pop across the battlefield. You covered Kabuto as he made his way to soldier after soldier, plucking flying weaponry from the air as the continuous booming of your electricity didn’t allow for a single second of recovery. 

As soon as the exit from the dead end was clear, you made for it, following hot on Kabuto’s heels. The two of you ran, the bursts of your jutsu keying the enemy into your location while simultaneously keeping you untouchable. 

With one turn, you could see the fence. 

A group of shinobi appeared in front of you. Kabuto charged in, swiping his chakra blade at the man in front of him. He didn’t see the man’s comrade behind him, the shinobi gearing up a kunai to strike while Kabuto was occupied. Kabuto’s eyes went wide instinctually as he willed himself to move quickly to protect himself. 

You were quicker, sending a bolt of electricity to strike the shinobi down. It cracked past Kabuto’s cheek, leaving a shallow, bloody line in its wake. He didn’t miss a beat, taking down the rest of the squad before the two of you made for the hole in the fence. 

You kept running, barely glancing at the chaos you left behind. Kabuto grumbled, wiping away the blood that trickled from his face. His only wound from the battle was from you.

“Watch where you’re aiming that next time.”

“Who said I was aiming?” you snapped back. “You should be thanking me for saving your life.” You lept into the trees, stomping on the thick branches below your boots. Leaves fell directly into Kabuto’s face.

“We wouldn’t have gotten into this mess if you hadn’t set off the alarm, you idiot.” A blue glow cast on the tree trunk next to you, and you narrowly avoided Kabuto’s chakra scalpel. Electricity sparked around you. The two of you continued moving forward to the rendezvous point. 

“Don’t ditch me next time, asshole.” The sparks cracked in the air. 

Kabuto charged at you. Lightning struck the tree behind him, causing a great creaking before the trunk completely tumbled over. You shot at him again and again as he approached, fending off your concentrated attacks with his signature jutsu. You sailed through the air backward, your stray bolts taking out all branches in your path. 

His foot caused your branch to bend forward, and you surrounded yourself completely with electricity in a single act of self-preservation. The large explosion leveled a few more trees, and in the smoke, you stopped on an adjacent branch. You spotted Kabuto opposite you, covered in soot and his tunic torn. 

“It saddens me to see the two of you fighting.” Orochimaru appeared next to you, arms crossed, as he shook his head in disappointment. “I came because I had a bad feeling, and look what I stumbled upon. You making such a ruckus—” He glanced over at Kabuto. “And you refusing to play well with others.”

The gecko tattoo crawled gingerly back toward your wrist. With a few signs and a swirl of your blood, you summoned the package back into reality. You held it up to Orochimaru with a certain amount of shame and sheepishness.

“We’ve secured the package.” Orochimaru gave it a once-over with a hum.

“Oh, I see.” His long tongue wrapped around the box, and as his jaw lowered, he swallowed the box whole. He glanced between you and Kabuto with a scowl. “You may have succeeded recklessly, but there’s still much to do.” Orochimaru took off into the night.

You and Kabuto made brief eye contact before you lept off after him.

Yeah, your next competition would be killing that son of a bitch.

Thank you to all who liked, reblogged, followed, and supported. Your support means so much and is greatly appreciated.

Notes: lmao the pipetting story is real, but I was Kabuto haha it was my last lab in undergrad and my partner was high-key salty about not having the “perfect microliter.” Also, writing the lightning nature is by far the most fun nature to write nothing can compare

Edit: OH YEAH the summon is a draco flying gecko

[thenexusofsouls]

{i am the caretaker of souls} So I was watching Farscape, the "A Bug's Life" episode, and got to the part where Zhaan whips up a test for the "intellent virus" infecting the crew and a Peacekeeper special ops team inside Moya. Near as I can tell, "intellent" is just supposed to mean intelligent or sentient, heh. The "virus" gets into someone and it emulates their personality, so you don't know who's infected. But it causes systemic acidity in the body. So Zhaan goes to her little laboratory and comes up with an alkaline injection that would threaten the life of someone with the virus' level of acidity in their bodies. Kindof a test to see who's infected. Pseudo-science at best, but Farscape was full of that and I'm used to it.

But then I see the... "injector" Zhaan's using, and I just

That's... that's a pipette, not a syringe, haha. It's painted silver to look more high tech I guess, but for someone who has worked in laboratories for many years, I can tell you this is just so obviously a pipette it's not even funny. It's meant to squirt out aliquots of liquids. You jam it into a box of little disposable sterile plastic tips, push the plunger down, suck up liquid by slowly releasing the plunger, and then push the plunger again to dispense the liquid. Then you hit the tip-ejector button, the tip pops off, and you're ready for a new one for the next sample. It's similar to one of these, with the yellow bit being the disposable tip:

Yet she uses it to supposedly inject people with this alkaline concoction she's whipped up and I'm just like... there isn't even a needle on the end of it, how... how are you even... doing this? She doesn't use tips either, she's just... using it without one, which is such a no-no. XD Not only that, but it looks to me like she's holding it backwards. Or maybe that the front arm has been removed? The tip-ejector button should be in the back by your thumb and there's a little arm or finger shield that goes over your other fingers in the front that helps keep it in the correct position in your hand, like this:

I mean, I can suspend disbelief and be like nope, that's not a pipette, that's a special... space... injector... thingy. Yeeeah. But... it's a pipette. XD Sorry, it's just, as a scientist I found this hilarious and needed to share, just ignore me, lol.

[mush-dooms]

do I use twenty boxes of tips that are harder to open but won't make my pipette ejector fly off or use three boxes of tips that are easier to open but may potentially make my ejector fall off. I will use the same amount of tips either way, which is just under 2000.

[antibio]

twick or tweat :)

non sterile pipette tip box

[theresa-of-liechtenstein]

also being trained to take over this project is so interesting to me in so many ways. bc

i am quickly learning that i have to unlearn a lot of questionable habits from being accustomed to my last lab. apparently ‘pick up the micropipette tip from the recycled box of nitrile gloves and manually attach it to your pipette’ is not. how it’s supposed to be done

my supervisor and labmate are both so incredibly nice and helpful. i said ‘oh im sorry’ when i took an embarrassingly long time to open a microcentrifuge tube with my thumb (i’ve only used large centrifuges) and my supervisor said ‘no worries! you’re doing it for the first time!’

however sometimes when they start discussing their differences in certain lab processes i am literally just standing there like 💁🏼‍♀️🧍🏻‍♀️💁🏻‍♀️

it’s a damn good thing i don’t have to worry about learning all of this in my first quarter of residency. if i had to learn all this And take my fundamentals course And have new repertoire in orchestra And potentially have to TA an upper division course. i would not have survived.

[loop-deloo]

no idea what album thing that anon was referring to but BOY DO I HAVE RECS:

hopping off their billy joel talk, MY personal favorite bj album is glass houses. some of his best work, everyone’s a banger. i feel like i have some credibility here being from long island, so i have many opinions about our boy billy and their all right.

other albums hmmm. i LOVE the kink’s village green. mystery jet’s twenty one is one of the best early band albums out there, the shit that they pulled being so new is INSANE. also the doors’ soft parade.

one of my favorite albums of all time has to be the lemon twigs’ go to school. it’s an experimental musical about a chimp raised by humans who experiences culture shocks and it’s insane. those boys are my everything, THE THEORY. THE KEY CHANGES UGHHHH

what else what else uhhh talking heads’ more songs about buildings and food is up there for me. moondog’s h’art songs. PAUL MCCARTNEY’S RAM THAT’S THE ONE THAT’S IT.

kinda went off oops my bad. these are just some off the top of my head 🤪 anyways love you let me know if you take a listen i love music talk <333

ok claude you sent this like a month ago, i’m so sorry. it takes me SO long to listen to albums bc i have to listen at least 5 times to be confident that i’ve actually listened to most of it. i get distracted :/ i’m sorry. anyway. i am very much working my way through

here are my thoughts so far but i’ll keep going later.

you definitely have lots more authority than me i’m from philly. tell me more opinions on bj though i’d love to hear. i think i was like a solid 8/10 on glass houses. good story. fantastic work album listened to it for most of the day while i organised boxes of pipette tips and inputted hours of mind numbing data oh my god. also some bangers for cleaning the kitchen. i liked you may be right (kitchen dancing). honestly i liked all for leyna even though it was giving slightly musical theatre vibes. just. solid. and erm also v much enjoyed sleeping with the television on. c’etait toi was very sweet and the smooth voice mm, his accent threw me off a bit but that’s my problem. and close to the borderline was a good second-to-last always brought me back when i’d zoned out. did catch myself singin along when my coworker came in the back room where i was which was. er. we’ll oh well (i can’t fucking sing).

ok i have to go now but i’ve been alternating village green and twenty one in the shower (i lost the songs a lot in here so my thoughts are really jumbled and half done but i’ll write me down soon) and making my sister play doors n lemon twigs in the car. bops. i drive in a car like maybe once a week though so it’s slow going. i will sit perhaps soon and report back.

jesus that was a lot. oh welll. there’s more coming ;D

p.s. thank for this message it’s been making me happy when i come back to it.

GIVE ME MORE (not just putting this on claude. all of u come broaden my horizons pls)

[mewbimin7]

Um. Theres a 96 well plate full of e coli growths. Some SDS Page Gels. A box of pipette tips. How allergic am i? Can I just wear gloves to deal wtih it? Cuz then I just have to be a safer scientist.

[songhai1010597]

The Pipette tip is used to ensure the accuracy and precision of the experiment. The precision pipette tip provides optimum reproducibility and accuracy Standard tip and tip with filter can be disinfected and sterilized in high pressure. The unique filter element silicified tip does not hang the residual liquid, which guarantees the accuracy of quid transfer to the utmost.

[zmshealthbio]

How to Choose the Right Lab Supplier in the USA

Choosing the right lab supplier is crucial for the success of any laboratory—whether it's for educational, clinical, or research purposes. The quality of your equipment directly affects the accuracy of your experiments and the safety of your team. With so many options available in the market, how do you make the best choice? In this blog post, we’ll help you identify the key factors in selecting the right lab supplier in the USA and why ZMS HealthBio is a name worth trusting.

1. Check Product Range and Quality

A reliable lab supplier should offer a wide variety of products. From laboratory plasticware to specialized instruments, having access to everything in one place saves time and effort. Look for suppliers that provide:

Durable and chemically resistant laboratory plasticware

Accurate and contamination-free Pipette Tips

Certified laboratory glassware and consumables

Safety and hygiene products like gloves, masks, and gowns

Companies like ZMS HealthBio stand out in this category by offering an extensive selection of lab products, all meeting quality standards for scientific use.

2. Verify Product Certifications

When choosing a lab supplier in the USA, ensure that the products they offer are certified and comply with industry standards. Products like Pipette Tips must be free of DNase, RNase, and pyrogens to ensure experiment accuracy. Reputable suppliers like ZMS HealthBio clearly list certifications and product materials, helping you make informed decisions.

3. Consider Pricing and Bulk Order Options

Affordability matters, especially when buying in large quantities. A good lab supplier will offer competitive pricing without compromising on quality. ZMS HealthBio is known for providing lab essentials like laboratory plasticware and Pipette Tips at reasonable prices, with discounts available for schools, colleges, and bulk purchases.

4. Review Shipping and Delivery Services

Fast and secure delivery is vital when working with time-sensitive experiments or lab courses. Always choose suppliers who provide nationwide shipping with tracking options. ZMS HealthBio, for instance, offers fast delivery throughout the USA and even provides free home delivery on selected orders—making them an ideal choice for labs that require consistent supply.

5. Look for Excellent Customer Support

The best lab suppliers offer more than just products—they provide support. Whether you have questions about choosing the right type of laboratory plasticware or need help with your Pipette Tips order, responsive customer service makes a huge difference. ZMS HealthBio is praised for its helpful, knowledgeable support team who guide you every step of the way.

6. Check Reviews and Reputation

Always research the reputation of a lab supplier. Look at customer reviews, testimonials, and online ratings. Positive feedback from other labs, schools, and research institutions is a strong sign of reliability. ZMS HealthBio has built a solid reputation across the USA for consistent quality and dependable service.

Final Thoughts

Choosing the right lab supplier in the USA doesn't have to be difficult. Focus on product quality, affordability, delivery service, and customer support. When a supplier checks all these boxes—like ZMS HealthBio—you know you’re making the right choice.

Whether you need Pipette Tips, durable laboratory plasticware, or complete lab kits, ZMS HealthBio offers everything you need to keep your lab running smoothly.

[cotaus-biomedical]

Cotaus manufactures Qiagen BioRobot-compatible disposable pipette tips in 50 μL, 300 μL, and 1000 μL volumes. Black, conductive, filter or non-filter, sterile or non-sterile, 96 tips/rack, 50 boxes per case.

[bungerc0re]

some fucker sprayed down the hood with the pipette tip box open i used them and now my cells are dead. I am going to kill myself

My heartfelt sympathies.

[sciencesyd]

research.exe

You open your eyes and find yourself in a room illuminated by bright fluorescent lights.  Where am I?, you wonder, as you begin to scan the room.  To your right, you find a beaten-up, black leather couch with a sagging indentation in the seat cushion (it’s seen better days).  Directly in front of the couch, two rows of tables with thick black tabletops project out from the wall.  Wired shelves jut-out from the center of each table, almost touching the ceiling; each stuffed to the brim with boxes, glass flasks, tubes with blue-caps, and miscellaneous writing utensils.  You think, Huh, I wonder who’s lab this is?

OBJECTIVE: COMPLETE YOUR EXPERIMENT (0/4)

Oh, you think. Maybe this is my lab. You walk past the table closest to you, hesitantly inspecting its surface for any clues about the experiment you have to do. You see papers scattered about and various empty test tubes, but nothing really calls to you.  You turn your attention to the wired shelves above the desk, spotting what looks like a small plastic fish tank with a neon-pink top.  It looks just like the one you received as a child when you won a fish at the county fair

You approach the tank expecting to find a brightly colored fish, only to find that, disappointingly, there is none.  In fact, the tank is curiously lacking water.  You lean-in to  inspect the contents of the tank more closely, but immediately jump back in a fright.  Inside is a spider.  A very, very, dead, spider. 

Please tell me this is not a part of my experiment.

THIS IS NOT YOUR EXPERIMENT

Oh, thank God, you think as you let out a sigh of relief and retreat to the second table.  Your eyes start to wander up its shelves until you notice a rhythmic hum coming from behind you.  Intrigued, you turn around to a boxy machine, about the size of your torso, with a plexiglass front that is swirling a foil covered flask filled with dark yellow liquid.  A memory of you sitting across a desk from your new supervisor comes to mind; you remember her mentioning she would start culturing your bacteria so that you could start your experiments the following day. 

You think to yourself, This is probably for me, and reach towards the handle of the machine to open the plexiglass front.  Before you touch the handle, you see your bare, gloveless, hand, and think, That’s a problem.  You turn back to the table; scan the surface:  scientific glass paraphernalia, a small rack containing pipettes, various boxes of pipette tips, and – Ah! A box of gloves! You grab two and slip them on.  

Now, protected, you turn back to the machine and open the plexiglass cover, causing a warm, slightly smelly odor to waft out.  The machine instantly slows its rotating motion until the liquid in the flask stops swirling.  You grab the flask, feeling its warmth through the gloves.  

BACTERIA SUCCESSFULLY GROWN, COMPLETE EXPERIMENT (¼)

You hold up the glass towards the fluorescent lights and notice that the yellow liquid is quite cloudy.  You bring it to the table, remove the foil covering the top of the glass and –

GAME OVER YOU CONTAMINATED YOUR BACTERIAL CULTURE.  WHERE IS YOUR CONE OF STERILITY?

You open your eyes and find yourself in a room with fluorescent lights. Cautiously, you inspect the room: a beaten-up black leather couch, two rows of tables, over-stuffed shelves, and a very dead-spider in a tank.

OBJECTIVE: COMPLETE YOUR EXPERIMENT (0/4)

Let’s try this again. Steering clear of the table with the dead spider, you now walk to the second table and snag a pair of gloves.  As you stretch the gloves over your hands, you think back to when you last heard the term, “cone of sterility.”  You recall being in your microbiology class, using a Bunsen Burner to create a sterile work surface.  

And now when you look down, there’s a Bunsen burner accompanied with a metal striker next to the box of gloves.  How could you have missed this?  You open the valve connected to the burner and spark the striker, instantly igniting a bright blue flame.

Satisfied, you collect your bacterial culture from the machine once again.   

BACTERIA SUCCESSFULLY GROWN COMPLETE EXPERIMENT (1/4)

You bring the flask to your desk and remove its foil covering.  As you stare at the flask you think, What do I do now? 

You scan the table for clues and notice drawers underneath the desk.   You open the first drawer on your right to find a red, spiral-bound notebook. 

NOTEBOOK FOUND

You open the notebook and find pages filled with handwritten notes, tables, and calculations.  You flip through, page after page, stopping at the last entry titled, Protocol for PCR.  As you read through the protocol, a memory flashes through your mind.  Your supervisor is rattling off the steps you need to complete for your experiment while you frantically write down her every word.  You nod in triumph. Now I’m getting somewhere.

After reading through the first portion of the protocol, you get out the various test tubes and pipettes you’ll need for the experiment.  Apparently, you first need to get the DNA from your bacteria. 

Using your pipette, you transfer 0.5 mL of bacterial culture from your flask to one, small plastic tube.  You pause.  Was that right?

Feeling confident that you did, in fact, do that right, you continue to transfer 0.5 mL of culture into more tubes, getting into a bit of a groove.  After your fifth transfer, you twist to grab another 0.5 mL sample, causing your elbow to bump into  your flask, splattering the culture on you and the table –

GAME OVER YOU DESTROYED YOUR BACTERIAL CULTURE AND CONTAMINATED YOURSELF.  WHY WEREN’T YOU WEARING A LAB COAT?

You open your eyes and find yourself in a room with fluorescent lights.  You storm over to the second table, slip on a pair of gloves, and fling open the drawer with the notebook.  As you grab the notebook from the drawer, you ask yourself, , in a mocking tone, Why weren’t you wearing a lab coat?”.  I never needed to in my last lab! 

Frustrated, you open more drawers until you find a neatly folded white lab coat.   You pull your arms through its sleeves and secure the buttons on the front. Happy now?, you ask no one.

You flip open your notebook to your protocol and arrange your workspace accordingly, Bunsen burner included.  You turn to the incubator, open its cover, and take out the flask of bacterial culture.  

BACTERIA SUCCESSFULLY GROWN COMPLETE EXPERIMENT (1/4)

You place the flask on your desk, out of elbow-knocking range, and take a breath to steady yourself.  You remove its foil cover and, with great care and precision, begin pipetting samples of the culture into various tube.  As you move through your protocol,  you complete a series of repetitive steps:  adding reagents to tubes, placing them into a machine that spins them, discarding some of the liquid, adding more reagents – all in order to burst open the bacteria and to isolate their DNA.  After one final spin of the tubes, you are left with what appears to be a teardrop of liquid at the bottom of each tube.

DNA OBTAINED COMPLETE EXPERIMENT (2/4)

Yes!, you think, while doing a little fist pump.  You’re getting pretty good at this.  You refer to your notebook for the next steps and determine you must now prepare your DNA samples for PCR Amplification.  I know how to do this!, you think.  You did this in your previous lab.

You look through the shelves for a familiar box and grab the one labeled, Taq PCR Kit.  Hello old friend. You open the box, remove its bottled contents and dexterously mix your reagents into one small test tube. You then separate the contents equally into even smaller test tubes and finish-off by adding a  microscopic amount of bacterial DNA into each of the tiny test tubes.  After securing the caps to the top of each one, you think,  time to get these guys into the thermocycler.

You spot the laboratory-grade toaster-oven-like machine on a table across the room.  You rest your tubes on the table, lift up the top of the machine, and expose a metal sheet with a series of small, circular cutouts.  Carefully, you place each tube into its own circular slot and close the machine’s lid.  You look at the small screen on the front of the machine, touching a series of digital buttons to find the preloaded program needed to run so that your DNA samples will magically double in number with the power of heat and enzymes.  After pressing OK, the machine begins to hum and a timer appears on its screen, counting down from 01:18:00. 

Confident in your progress, you walk back to your station to scan your notebook for your next step.  You spot the words, Gel Electrophoresis, along with a series of  calculations for reagents you need to mix to create a small gelatinous square.  You fumble through the shelves until you find the reagents in question along with the equipment to make the gel.  After mixing and quickly microwaving the reagents in a flask, you pour the concoction into a rectangular mold the size of a notecard.  You have just finished placing what looks like a comb with 6 very wide teeth into the top of the rectangle when you hear a ding.

PCR COMPLETE COMPLETE EXPERIMENT (3/4)

Almost done!, you think to yourself as you hurry over to the machine and remove the tubes.  

You walk back to the gel with your tubes to notice that it has gone from liquid to solid.  It’s just like Jell-O, only so much more toxic.

Needing to remove the comb to reveal the indents into which  your DNA must go, you carefully wiggle the comb to loosen it from the gel.  

Nothing happens.  You wiggle harder. Why isn’t this working? You wiggle it even harder only to completely slice through your gel with its teeth.

No, no, no! You begin to panic, waiting for the inevitable GAME OVER, which you’ve already seen twice before.

But nothing happens. With a sigh of relief, you toss the gel in the container labeled, “WASTE,” and you weigh, mix, pour, and set your gel once again.  You re-attempt removing the comb, being extra careful this time, and it comes out with ease. You place the gel within its mold into a small container that has electrodes plugged into it, filling the container with enough solution to help transmit the electrical current through the gel to separate and visualize the DNA within it. 

You pop open the lids of each tiny tube and pipette a small sample of purple solution into each one (this will help you visualize the DNA within the gel under UV light). You transfer each sample into its own divet that you made with the comb, leaving the last one for your DNA ladder - your molecular ruler that measures the length of the DNA in the other wells. You put the lid over the box, switch on the electrical power supply, set the white, plastic time, and stare at it anxiously as it counts down from 30:00.

After what felt like an eternity, your timer beeps.  You turn off the machine and remove the lid. 

GEL ELECTROPHORESIS COMPLETE EXPERIMENT COMPLETED (4/4) CHECK RESULTS

You carefully remove the gel from the liquid, placing it on the square UV light box next to the container.  This is it, you think.  You place a clear, UV resistant cover over the gel, flip on the UV light, you hold your breath.  You peer at the gel, seeing small illuminated stripes down the right side as expected, but the rest of the gel is completely blank.  But I followed all the –

GAME OVER START OVER? Y / N