The teachers will have the opportunity to work alongside some of the nation’s top researchers and physicians in the labs of the Herman B Wells Center for Pediatric Research This inaugural event is an expansion of the original Molecular Medicine In Action (MMIA) program for Indiana high school students now in its 11th year and held each spring.
“After 10 successful years offering this workshop to students, we thought it was time to invite our science teachers to get a hands-on look at the ways scientists conduct research that are revolutionizing medicine in this century,” said program director Mark R. Kelley, Ph.D., Betty and Earl Herr professor of pediatric oncology research and associate director of the Wells Center. “We want to focus on current molecular approaches in medicine using state of the art technologies for personalized medicine and targeted therapies.”
The teachers will get a snapshot on where we are in our fight against cancer from Dr. Kelley as well as a bioethics lecture from Eric M. Meslin, Ph.D., director of the IU Center for Bioethics. Dr. Meslin will explain to teachers the role of ethics in biomedical research and incorporate a computer-based interactive component to his lecture. In the afternoon teachers will divide into three teams and rotate through three workstations where they will learn about the latest techniques of siRNA knockdown for cancer therapy, methods for analyzing DNA and chromosomes, gel electrophoresis and the role angiogenesis plays in a variety of diseases.
Support for this workshop includes funding from the Riley Children’s Foundation, Herman B Wells Center for Pediatric Research and the Lilly Endowment.