Mentors at Your Benchside

#55 — Do you know how to keep track of cell passages using passage numbers? Is there a maximum passage number you should grow cells? And is there a better way to keep tabs on how long your cells have been growing in culture? Listen to this episode to get answers to these questions and more.

You'll discover the theory behind passage numbers and learn there's a big problem with counting passages.

Read the original article on cell passage numbers to get easy-to-follow visual guides for counting passage numbers, [1] and discover how to calculate doubling numbers. [2]

Resources:
1. Understanding Cell Passage Number and How to Calculate it for Cell Cultures. Available at: https://bitesizebio.com/13685/cell-culture-passage-number-explained/
2. Best Practices in MSC Culture: Tracking & Reporting Cellular Age Using Population Doubling Level & Not Cell Passage Number. Available at: https://www.roosterbio.com/blog/best-practices-in-msc-culture-tracking-and-reporting-cellular-age-using-population-doubling-level-pdl-and-not-passage-number/

#54 — Do some people's terrible PPE habits bug you? Are you guilty of not wearing your PPE in the lab?

Listen to our top 10 PPE sins. Sins that we've all definitely committed at some point, and see if your pet peeve made it on.

Check out the original article to discover the differences between chemistry- and Howie-type lab coats. [1] And while you're at it, why not learn how to clean up chemical spills in the lab [2] and check out what these common but nasty reagents do to you? [3]

Resources:
1. 10 Common PPE Sins. Available at: https://bitesizebio.com/9850/10-common-ppe-sins/
2. How to Clean up Chemical Spills in the Lab: 4 Essential Rules. Available at: https://bitesizebio.com/9357/how-to-clean-up-chemical-spills-in-the-lab/
3. Ten Bad Chemicals in the Lab and What They do to You! Available at: https://bitesizebio.com/10470/ten-bad-chemicals-in-the-lab-and-what-they-do-to-you/

#53 — Anywhere but the face!

On the list of places you wouldn't want to spill a chemical, I bet your face ranks pretty high.

Wise scientists know their face protection.

Are you aware of the different types of eye and face protection available? In the latest episode of Mentors At Your Benchside, we discuss PPE you can use to keep your eyes and face safe and when to wear it.

Check out the original article for figures on the different types of eye and face protection. [1] And take lab safety up a notch by brushing up on these non-chemical hazards. [2]

Resources:
1. PPE for Eye and Face Protection—Better Safe than Sorry! Available at: https://bitesizebio.com/23136/know-your-ppe-face-protection/
2. Ten Non-Chemical Lab Hazards and What They Do to You! Available at: https://bitesizebio.com/20865/ten-non-chemical-lab-hazards-and-what-they-do-to-you/

#52 — Acids are ubiquitous in the lab. We use them for many tasks, such as pH-ing solutions, cleaning glassware, calibrating instruments, and dissolving analytes.

But they are extremely dangerous chemicals. It's imperative, therefore, that we handle strong acids safely. That is, prepare, use, use and dispose of them with minimal risk.

So, in this episode, we'll discuss how to handle common strong acids, such as hydrochloric and nitric acid. We'll also look at how to prepare astonishingly strong acids such as aqua regia and piranha solution—for those really stubborn stains.

Read the corresponding online article for handy bulleted instructions for handling strong acids in the lab. [1] Also, why not check out our articles on generating risk assessments, [2] and PPE to keep you safer in the lab? [3]

Resources:
1. How to Handle Strong Acids in the Lab. Available at: https://bitesizebio.com/66018/how-to-handle-strong-acids/
2. How to Conduct a Risk Assessment: 6 Essential Steps to a Safer Lab. Available at: https://bitesizebio.com/31021/conduct-hazard-identification-risk-assessment/
3. PPE for Eye and Face Protection—Better Safe than Sorry!. Available at: https://bitesizebio.com/23136/know-your-ppe-face-protection/

#51 — A neglected pH meter means less reliable experiments, poor reproducibility, and time wasted. Yet, despite being critical to all our experiments, they are frequently neglected, abused, and left to dry out.

In this episode, we'll learn the basic facts about how a pH meter works. Then, using this knowledge, we'll explain how to look after your pH meter and how to fix it the next time it's mishandled by your harried and harrassed lab buddies.

Check out the original article for a handy pH meter schematic to aid your understanding. [1] And to take your lab wizardry to envious levels, why not read our article on pH, pKa, and pI? [2] While you're at it, be sure to learn how buffers work, [3] and check out our lab DIY hub! [4]

Resources:
1. How to Use a pH Meter Correctly in 4 Simple Steps. Available at: https://bitesizebio.com/8750/how-to-care-for-your-ph-meter/
2. The Definitive Guide to pH, pKa, and pI. Available at: https://bitesizebio.com/9425/what-is-ph-pka-pi/
3. How Do Buffers Work? Available at: https://bitesizebio.com/8478/how-do-buffers-work/
4. Bitesize Bio's Lab DIY Hub. Available at: https://bitesizebio.com/lab-diy/

#50 — While we all know the dangers of too much UV light from the sun and the need to wear sunscreen, how much thought do we give to the dangers of UV light in the lab?

It's not just ourselves that we need to protect, as UV light can also damage our precious samples.

Listen to this episode to learn how UV light damages DNA, the sources of UV light in the lab, and precautions to take to protect you and your experiments.

Read the full article [1] to get handy visuals and see the full table of UV light sources in the lab. UV light isn't the only danger to your DNA samples in the lab; read our article on 5 ways to damage DNA to discover other things to avoid when working with DNA. [2]

Resources:
1. How UV Light Damages DNA and the Havoc it Can Cause to Your Experiments. Available at: https://bitesizebio.com/36762/how-uv-light-damages-dna/
2. 5 Ways to Damage DNA. Available at: https://bitesizebio.com/744/5-ways-to-damage-dna/

#49 — It's not easy being rich. If your DNA is GC-rich and you're struggling to amplify it, you aren't alone. Listen to this Mentors At Your Benchside episode to discover why GC-rich regions are problematic to PCR and simple ways to help with amplification.

Don't forget to visit the full article. [1] For more help and advice on PCR, read our Beginner's Guide to PCR [2] to ensure you have a solid grounding in how it works, and discover The Essential PCR Troubleshooting Checklist. [3]

Resources:
1. Problems Amplifying GC-rich regions? 5 Easy Solutions. Available at: https://bitesizebio.com/24002/problems-amplifying-gc-rich-regions-problem-solved/
2. What is PCR? The Beginner’s Guide. Available at: https://bitesizebio.com/19132/pcr-basics-what-is-pcr/
3. The Essential PCR Troubleshooting Checklist. Available at: https://bitesizebio.com/343/the-essential-pcr-troubleshooting-checklist/

#48 — One of the critical skills required for any scientist is the ability to consistently design and carry out successful experiments. It’s also vital that any experiments can be replicated. There are, of course, many variables that can cause an experiment to fail, but there are some basic steps that, if taken routinely, can increase your chances of success.

In this episode, we've rounded up our 8 top tips to help you achieve perfect experimental procedures!

Read the original article for more resources to help you achieve experimental success. [1] If you're struggling to decipher your sticky notes, see our top 10 tips for organizing your lab book once and for all! [2]

Resources:
1. 8 Steps to More Successful Experiments. Available at: https://bitesizebio.com/7358/8-steps-to-more-successful-experiments/
2. 10 Tips For Organizing Your Lab Book. Available at: https://bitesizebio.com/11068/10-tips-for-organizing-your-lab-book/

#47 — Buffers are everywhere in a lab. But do you know why we use them? Listen to this episode of Mentors At Your Benchside as we explain what buffers are, how they work, and why understanding this could improve your research. You'll also get top tips on choosing and using buffers in the lab.

Check out the original article on how buffers work for helpful figures and to get a non-exhaustive list of Good's buffers. [1] Now you know how buffers work, why not learn how to design the perfect buffer for your protein purification experiments, [2] or read about what separates good buffers from outstanding ones? [3]

Resources:
1. How Do Buffers Work? Available at: https://bitesizebio.com/8478/how-do-buffers-work/
2. How to Design the Perfect Protein Purification Buffer. Available at: https://bitesizebio.com/7893/how-to-design-the-perfect-protein-purification-buffer/
3. What Makes a “Good” Laboratory Buffer? Available at: https://bitesizebio.com/11226/what-makes-a-good-laboratory-buffer/
 

#46 — If you are performing quantitative PCR (qPCR), you must understand what a Ct value is. In this episode of Mentors at Your Benchside, we'll take you through its critical role in qPCR, its various names, how to calculate it and what it means when it all seems to go a bit wrong.

Visit the original article for a helpful figure that explains Ct values. [1] Plus, visit our related articles to discover important considerations for determining qPCR efficiency, [2] learn how to analyze your qPCR data using double delta Ct analysis, [3] and get advice on housekeeping genes. [4]

Don't forget to brush up on the MIQE guidelines. [5]

Resources:
1. What Is a Cq (Ct) Value? Available at: https://bitesizebio.com/24581/what-is-a-ct-value/
2. Important Considerations for Determining qPCR Efficiency. Available at: https://bitesizebio.com/3177/determining-qpcr-efficiency/
3. 4 Easy Steps to Analyze Your qPCR Data Using Double Delta Ct Analysis. Available at: https://bitesizebio.com/24894/4-easy-steps-to-analyze-your-qpcr-data-using-double-delta-ct-analysis/
4. Keeping On Top of Housekeeping Genes. Available at: https://bitesizebio.com/23467/keeping-on-top-of-housekeeping-genes/
5. The MIQE guidelines: minimum information for publication of quantitative real-time PCR experiments. Available at https://doi.org/10.1373/clinchem.2008.112797