The Second Month

This has been a very difficult month, due to the many adversities that we have facing that are keeping us apart from success. Several adjustments have been done concerning the aseptic aspects and the concentrations of our matrix components, but unfortunately the seed are still getting contaminated by the fungus. Not knowing what else to do, we went to the basis once again, search in the literature. We found another procedure for the preparation encapsulating matrix and we decided to implement it in our own. Everything seemed perfect until we noticed that the encapsulating solution seemed less viscose as it used to be. The consequence was that the resulting seeds were too a fragile. That means that we are still making adjustments to our procedure. In spite of it all, not everything has been that bad, given that I have been able to nurture myself in knowledge during this month. The mentor has exposed my partner and me in the different plant propagation techniques. Among them is the production of protocorm-like bodies (PLBs), which consist in taking out seeds from the orchid’s seed pod and transfer them into a black medium (charcoal). The utility of this medium is that absorbs the toxins and promotes the production of the PLBs. Another technique that I have learned is the tissue culture technique, which consists in transferring the PLBs from charcoal to a sugar free medium to promote a better growth environment and acclimatization. 

I had the opportunity of visiting the blogs of others students also from the BioMinds Program. It is remarkable the variety of fields with applications to Biotechnology. I found fascinating all their works and they all seem to be exited with their respective investigations which are the most important thing. The one that I liked most was the Angel’s Casanova, a student from the UPR of Humacao, and whose investigation is in the field of Geomicrobiology. 

~ by jctec on March 25, 2008.