FLIES
Jacob Decker works in a lab where they study flies due to their fast life cycle which allows scientists to study them for fast results. The flies were an example of a model organism that is used to understand basic sciences. Flies heal their wounds at a rapid pace due to a gene they have. Having a mutation in that gene causes them to heal strangely. In addition to this, they brought flies at different stages of their life cycle. As well as flies with unique wings and different colored eyes from the genetic engineering because you can physically see the enhancements in technology today and how far technology has come. This experience made an impression on me because of my basic understanding of biomedical labs by allowing me to understanding what it takes for certain experiments to happen and to what extent they are. For a long time, I thought that mice were the only animals tested in labs but the main reason they are used is that they are mammals that sexually reproduce like humans.
ZEBRA FISH
Dr. Cecilia Moens works in a lab that works with zebrafish that similar to flies study their life cycle in order to get more an understanding of the human body. We watched a video on why zebrafish is an important component in understanding how the human body work since humans and zebrafish are both vertebrates. Zebrafish have many factors to them that make them important to scientists like the fact that their embryos can grow outside mother and that they are reproduced at an efficient pace. They are genetically engineered easier than most organisms because their development in the embryo takes a little over a day to develop vital organs. They are beneficial in CRISPR experiments because change is noticeable on then. When as a certain gene is silenced they become albino or even half albino. In addition to this, vice versa where albino zebrafish can have a certain gene turned on into half albino to fully on. Going into the lab and actually being able to see baby fish through the microscope was amazing due to the fact I was able to see their bloodstream. Then seeing them in the tanks was a nice experience because you can see all the maintenance that goes into making sure they are fast and sterile. This made an impression on me because I have never been one to support animal testing but these animals are extraordinary and make a great impact on the whole science agenda.
