Jessica Prenatt

Yankee Transplant in Atlanta, GA

Lovejoy Middle School- 7^th Grade Integrated Sciences

Please drop me a line at home:

  YanksinGA@AOL.com

I spent my summer lab experience in the Center for Wound Research under the supervision of Dr. Gregory S. Schulz, a professor in the departments of Obstetrics and Gynecology. Throughout my stay, I had the opportunity to work on a wide variety of specific research projects, while learning about basic equipment and techniques used in biotechnology. My main research experiences were in two areas:

Helping test a new drug being developed by the Japanese pharmaceutical company, Santen, Inc. which may eventually help in more effectively treating epithelial cornea wounds. Our five day long study was needed to get more information on the drug before it could be considered for pre-clinical trials in humans. I felt very fortunate to be a part of a research team going through the interesting process that the Federal Food and Drug Administration requires for new drugs to be put out on the market. For more information on the drug approval process, the F.D.A has a great web site.

Developing gene templates and isolating e. coli bacterial plasmids to be used for in vivo transvection and cell transvection. The two main projects using these techniques during my time at the lab included:

Studying rat chronic, ischemic (not receiving oxygen) skin wounds, with possible future applications in humans, especially in chronic, ischemic skin wounds developed through lack of circulation (and therefore feeling) in the outer appendages of diabetics.

Developing a way to quantify the products produced by Polymerase Chain Reactions (PCR) through a new process called Reverse Transcriptase- Polymerase Chain Reactions (RT-PCR) that uses a known quantity of a variable to quantify the unknown variable. Dr. Schultz wants to develop this technique so that he is better able to understand the healing process of wounds through the actual amounts of different hormones that are playing a role over time in the healing process.

Dr. Schultz is a busy guy, but is also very supportive of us educators. (He has a son in middle school.) If you have any questions regarding his research, you can reach him by e-mail at:

schultzg@obgyn.med.ufl.edu

 A final note: If any of the stuff that I have written above seems hard to understand, believe me when I say that I had no clue what the word "biotechnology" meant when I first entered the program. As I near the end of the Teacher Research Update Experience, I leave with a working understanding of this multi-faceted term, and the "miracle" (not to mention ethical) implications of biotechnolgy. Not since the invention of the electron microscope has there been such a catalyst to bring together the distinct scientific "disciplines" to begin creating such a wave of knowledge. The biotechnology "gene pool" tidal wave is about to break on the shores of our society. Today's Science teachers seemingly have the sole responsibility (as usual) to help our communities understand the concepts involved in genetic technologies, so that its future can be properly supported and protected. Just think, the entire human genome will be mapped in less than 4 years… are you ready????!!!!