The evaluation system is an important component of the institutional arrangements that may shape the career trajectories of researchers. Using logistic regression and recursive partition models, we analyze the resulting key individual level factors that seem to play an important role in the promotion of researchers through the research evaluation…

As a universal and extensively adopted technique, enzyme-linked immunosorbent assay (ELISA) can be used to detect and quantify small molecules in many applications both clinical and analytical. However, generally, students experiment mechanically using commercial ELISA kits according to the instructions and eventually produce a standard curve to…

We present a course-embedded undergraduate research module that involves real-time polymerase chain reaction testing for the presence of SARS-CoV-2 in environmental samples. A positive control RNA was constructed and two RNA extraction methods were compared and a range of primers were available to compare. Using a combination of published…

The National Center for Biotechnology Information Entrez Direct (EDirect) software facilitates programmatic access to numerous biomedical, chemical, and literature databases from within a Unix terminal. EDirect has traditionally been used for command line access to NCBI data within the fields of computational biology and bioinformatics. This…

The rapid development of molecular biotechnology presents a curricular challenge for educators trying to provide students with relevant coursework. A comprehensive biology education should also include opportunities for students to develop intellectual and technical skills through authentic research experiences. Integrating relevant and…

An undergraduate online course on Applied Biochemistry and Molecular Biology was developed through different formats of case study that included lecture, class discussion, small-groups discussion, and individual work. Cases covering health, biotechnology, agriculture, and other issues were developed or adapted from the literature to reach the…

Protein engineering represents a modern approach to generate novel proteins for the different fields of biotechnology. Here, we report about an 8-day laboratory activity in which students generate enzyme variants to degrade the herbicide glyphosate. The students conduct a true research experiment in an important field (bioremediation by novel,…

In this work, we present the results of an undergrad student from the perspective of its first approach as a principal researcher in a project. In order to gain practical experience, one of the options for students that have interest in pursuing a postgraduate program corresponds to a research stay in a laboratory of their selected field…

Recombinant protein expression and site-directed mutagenesis of target genes have demonstrated an increasing importance in the fields of molecular biology, biochemistry, biotechnology, and medicine. By using the flavodoxin of the model cyanobacterium "Anabaena" sp. PCC 7120 as a laboratory tool, we designed a comprehensive laboratory…

With the advancement of ribonucleic acid (RNA) research in the field of biochemistry, ensuring that undergraduate students have both the theoretical and practical knowledge of current, cutting-edge experimental techniques is of marked importance. Many current biochemistry experiments demonstrate various basic molecular biological techniques…

Teaching the Genome Generation (TtGG) is a teacher professional development program and set of high school biology lessons that support interwoven classroom instruction of molecular genetics, bioinformatics, and bioethics. Participating teachers from across New England implement the modular elements of program at a high rate in a variety of…

The molecular structure of living organisms and the complex interactions amongst its components are the basis for the diversity observed at the macroscopic level. Proteins and nucleic acids are some of the major molecular components, and play a key role in several biological functions, such as those of development and evolution. This article…

There is a disparity in the number of adults from minority populations employed in STEM careers. In order to increase the interest of at-risk high school students in the STEM field in Queens, NY, an immersive summer biotechnology boot camp was developed. Fifty-five predominantly minority and female students completed the summer boot camp over a…

This study aims to investigate the impacts of a digital learning module with guided peer feedback on students' domain-specific knowledge gain and their attitudinal change in the field of biotechnology and molecular life sciences. The extent to which the use of this module is appreciated by students is studied as well. A pre-test, post-test design…

While computational biology and bioinformatics became an inherent part of most life science degrees, it remains challenging to encourage students to employ these diverse skills in a practical research context. In this education paper, we present a method to enable students to acquire hands-on skills by the data-driven study of complex biomolecular…