First Sequences

Nov 04, 2014

149

First SequencesWe have data!!
For the last 2 months, I have been chopping up little pieces of gill or sea cucumber tissue, extracting the DNA from that tissue, selecting small parts of the DNA using specific primers, amplifying a ton of it using PCR, and then sending it through a machine that spits out all the A's, T's, C's, and G's making up each animals' genetic code. And the results are in!
Wellllll, kind of. :) We just successfully sequenced the first batch, which was only about 40 of the 298 samples we have in all. But progress is progress! And now that we have our procedures more or less optimized, things will move a lot more smoothly from here on out. Stay tuned!
To read more about the transition from fieldwork to labwork, or to see a photo of what my sequences look like, check out my latest (relatively short) blog post:
 eastofthewoods.wordpress.com 

Sue, Niraj, and 2 others like this.

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About This Project

Using DNA to Protect Fiji's Fisheries

American Museum of Natural History

Fishing for food is extremely important in many rural areas of Fiji. However, as many reef fishers shift from eating their catch to selling the majority for profit, fishing pressures exerted on typically targeted fishes are increasing dramatically. My study will use genetic markers to uncover the movement patterns of five of these important species throughout the islands of Fiji, to help determine how to best protect these valuable fish stocks.