Laboratory of Molecular Biology open day, Sat 21/6 (Cambridge)

Hello!

In case anyone is interested, the Laboratory of Molecular Biology opens it doors to the public to celebrate the opening of its new building. The day is packed with talks, activities for children and exhibitions, followed by a stand-up comedy cabaret in the evening:

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The talks are as follows:

The code for success: the pioneering work of the LMB (11.00).

Archivist Annette Faux takes a look at the LMB’s achievements from its humble beginnings in Protected content the present day.
How alcohol harms you and your baby (12.00).

It’s well know that damage to DNA in our cells can make them malfunction, resulting in cell death and cancer. Whilst studying a rare illness in humans, called Fanconi’s Anaemia, scientists at the LMB identified the factors responsible for damaging sufferers’ DNA and causing the disease. As a consequence, they also found intriguing new evidence about how alcohol harms us through its propensity to damage DNA.
Untangling Alzheimer’s disease (13.00).

The two major hallmarks of Alzheimer’s disease are extracellular plaques of beta-amyloid protein and intracellular tangles of tau protein found in the nerve cells of the brain. Scientist Graham Fraser talks about his laboratory’s work which has the aim of discovering how tangles form, how they damage nerve cells and how they can be prevented from forming.
From Oocyte to Egg: a dangerous journey at the beginning of life (14.00).

Group Leader Melina Schuh talks about her laboratory’s work in researching how abnormal numbers of chromosomes arise from errors in cell division. Melina’s research aims to impact on understanding the causes of miscarriage, genetic disorders and infertility in humans.
The ribosome: the cell’s protein factory and how antibiotics block it (15.00).

Ribosomes are large molecular complexes that translate the genetic code into thousands of proteins. Scientist Rebecca Voorhees explains how the LMB’s work has provided insights into how antibiotics bind to specific pockets in the ribosome structure, which could help in designing antibiotics with fewer negative effects on human cells.