ME Bioscience Day Videos
ME Bioscience Day 2022 Recap
The 7th annual ME Bioscience Day took place earlier this month as a hybrid event with both in-person volunteers and virtual video formats. 35 amazing volunteers visited local middle schools to get students excited about science and inform them of the opportunities they may have working in a science related field in their future. Schools that participated virtually watched the videos below and took part in a hands-on activity to explore protein channels. This year, we reached 6,700 students from 46 schools in Maine!
ME Bioscience Day 2022 Introduction
Each year, the BioME team and schools across the state look forward to ME Bioscience Day. ME Bioscience Day is a statewide event that aims to get students excited about life science and raise awareness of career opportunities available within Maine’s life sciences industry. Our 7th annual event is taking place throughout the week of November 14-18, 2022.
Part 1: Dr. Melissa Maginnis from from University of Maine
Melissa Maginnis, PhD, is an Associate Professor of Microbiology at the University of Maine’s School for Molecular & Biomedical Sciences. Dr. Maginnis is also the Director of the Maginnis Laboratory at University of Maine.
Part 2: Dr. Colleen Mayberry from The Jackson Laboratory
Dr. Colleen Mayberry is a Post Doctoral Scientist at the The Jackson Laboratory in Bar Harbor, ME. Dr. Mayberry received her PhD in Microbiology from the University of Maine.
Part 3: Brian Harris from MedRhythms
Brian Harris is the Co-Founder and CEO of MedRhythms. MedRhythms uses music and technology to help people with brain injury or disease.
This work, “Folding Protein Channels” is a derivative of “Paper Protein Activity – Part 1 – Amino Acids” and “Paper Protein Activity – Part 2 – Protein Channel” by Arizona Science Center & Ask A Biologist Funded by the National Center for Research Resources of the National Institutes for Health. https://askabiologist.asu.edu/venom/folding-part1
ME Bioscience Day Hands-On Activity: Folding Protein Channels
Following the scientists’ video presentations is an interactive hands-on activity, allowing students to see scientific principles exhibited in their own classroom.
Proteins are made of building blocks called amino acids, and have their own special shape. Not only do proteins look different, they have different jobs to do inside the cell to keep your body running smoothly.
In this activity, students will be folding origami amino acids to create a protein channel.
Protein channels sit in the outer cell surface, or membrane, and works like a door that lets certain molecules pass through. Some channels are open all the time while others can be closed depending on signals from the cell or the environment. When the channel is open, other molecules can enter the cell by passing through the hole in the middle.