Charger Blogger Grows Cells and Discusses Having Confidence in Your Research

Hey, everyone, and welcome to your unsolicited research update. If you’re new here, hi, I’m a mad scientist who likes to write about their weird scientific adventures. In the past, I’ve dabbled in melting fish, and now I’ve moved forward into the cellular part of biology, where everything is excruciatingly tiny.

I swear, I’m going to get gray hair from doing this.

My most recent update was a summary of what I’ve been up to, and why I’m doing my research. Essentially, I think microplastics are killing people. Whether it be through air, water, or ingestion, these funky little particles are finding ways into our bodies and royally messing them up. Namely, I will be looking at the gene markers of cells (HEK-293) to determine whether or not microplastics may be contributing to the development of neurodegenerative diseases or cancer.

While I know this may sound like some futuristic sci-fi blabber, I often find myself feeling discouraged about my project. In comparison to the other individuals who are a part of the lab, I’ve barely gotten anything going. While I do have cells that are being cultivated (albeit slower than originally planned), there is a lot more work to be done. Funnily enough, it’s my job to present next week, and [nervous laughter] I’m terrified.

It’s not the presentation that I’m scared of– I could talk all day long – but the fact that I’m presenting to these genius people who may think my project is, I dunno, stupid? That being said, I’ve been trying to not beat myself up about it too much. Everyone has to start somewhere, and I’m grateful that I do have a place to start in the first place. Though, during lab meetings, I fear that most things go over my head because my brain isn’t wrinkly enough, lol.

There have been a lot of difficulties this week in terms of cell growth. After passaging (re-feeding and getting rid of old cells), the majority of my cells were just dying (two times!) and I barely managed to save the few I had left. The good news is that the cells did manage to grow– albeit one flask looked really weird, and I decided to chuck it –and I was able to passage them again without issue.

I brought up the issues with my lab mates, and with some serious brainstorming and troubleshooting, we determined the cause was over-trypsinizing my cells. For those who don’t know what that means, trypsin is a protein that detaches cells. In this case, it removes the cells from the T-25 flask wall so that they’re free floating in my media. Then, I centrifuge, put in new flasks, and incubate. Badabing badaboom: science. However, losing a ton of cells doesn’t really help with that process, and it slows me down by a good margin. Hooray. Here’s to learning, I guess?

I think that it’s a normal phenomenon for everyone in their 20s to feel lost and unsure what they want to do – even if it’s a terrifying feeling to feel. The feeling of being lost, feeling doubt, I believe these are the emotions that help us navigate through our lives. Where does our doubt dissipate? Why? Knowing what guides and fulfills us is where we want to be in life, and it is important to acknowledge when those things are no longer part of our peace.

But, uhhhhh yeah. That’s where I am right now research-wise, and I hope that this article reminds you (whether you are in research or not) that it’s okay to feel a little bit behind. If anything, it just encourages you to keep moving forward and to become better educated in the field that you’re curious about 🙂!

Wishing you all well, and giving you a nudge to stay curious and open! The world is our oyster.

With much love,
Beatrice