Biology On Wheels

By Larissa Lytwyn

St Rose School students in science teacher Robin Ruiz’s class, along with their parents, recently spent a cold October evening aboard the florescent-lit BioBus. The 40-foot-long vehicle is essentially a mobile laboratory created out of a partnership between Connecticut United for Research Excellence (CURE) and Connecticut Innovations, Inc.

Fully equipped with state-of-the-art laboratory equipment and staffed by CURE scientists, BioBus presents six primary experiments geared toward different age groups from elementary through high school.

St Rose School enjoyed three programs geared towards all age groups.

“A Twist of Lyme,” specifically designed for high-school-age audiences, allowed families to detect Lyme disease. Using the ELISAs (Enzyme-Linked Immunosorbent Assays) test, experimenters are able to identify the tick-carried bacterium responsible for the illness. Shortly after infection, patients release IgM and IgG antibodies. The ELISA test uses specific antigens found on the bacterium to detect the presence of antibodies, thus indicating whether a person is infected.

“Mystery of the Crooked Cell,” typically targeting middle and high school students, allowed the St Rose School team to explore different aspects of sickle cell anemia, an inherited disease, and develop an explanation of how it affects patients on a molecular level. Using gel electrophoresis to test for the sickle cell trait, the team studied the appearance of hemoglobin, a type of red blood cell affected by sickle cell carriers, to determine whether the patient had the disease, was a carrier, or normal.

Finally, “Art of Forgery” allowed the St Rose guests to use DNA fingerprinting to determine which of three similar paintings was the da Vinci masterpiece “Mona Lisa.” Through performing gel electrophoresis, the St Rose team compared each paint sample to a sample similar to the original “Mona Lisa.”

BioBus scientist David Briere taught the team how to use a $350-plus pipette unit key to performing gel electrophoresis.

“How genetically similar do you think people are?” queried the other BioBus scientist, Erin Fiondella. The group was divided.

“We are actually 99.9 percent alike,” said Ms Fiondella. “Chimpanzees, in fact, are more genetically similar to humans than they are to gorillas.”

For each experiment, the St Rose team donned safety goggles and protective nonlatex gloves. Each experiment took about 20 minutes to complete. The St Rose class was able to use the bus’s overhead cabinets as dry eraser boards to jot down notes.

BioBus has traveled to communities throughout the state, visiting schools in every county. For more information about the New Haven-based BioBus program, contact Program Coordinator Abby Demars at 203-777-8747 or visit www.ctbiobus.org.