Dr. Laura Grassie
Content Creation Manager, Bitesize Bio
Appears in 30 Episodes
How to Make Your Own Chemically Competent Cells
#83 — Chemically competent cells are a key resource in molecular biology labs. But do you really understand what is meant by chemically competent?In this episode of Me...
5 Easy Tips for Keeping Your Centrifuge Alive
#82 — Did you know that most centrifuge accidents result from user error and improper centrifuge care? While proper balancing of samples is important, it is not the on...
How Blunt-End Cloning Works
#81 — You’re probably aware of the two main types of restriction cloning (sticky-end and blunt-end cloning), but do you know the difference? And do you know how to do ...
How FRET Works: A Guide to Visualizing Protein Interactions
#78 — Want to visualize if your proteins interact in live cells? FRET is the answer. In this Mentors at Your Benchside episode, we explain how FRET works, why it's gre...
How Can We Make Science More Accessible?
#77 — Have you ever thought about accessibility in science? We don’t always present our science in ways that are accessible to everyone. Nor is lab-based science alwa...
A Short History of Cell Biology
#76 — Do you know how the first cells were identified? Or who discovered them? What about why they are called cells? Discover the fascinating history in this enlighten...
How to use a Hemocytometer
#75 — Counting your cultured cells is vital to seeding the right density for your experiments, harvesting an appropriate amount of downstream experiments, preparing ce...
Understand How Alkaline Lysis Works
#74 — Understanding how a technique works make it simpler to troubleshoot when things go wrong in your experiments. Learn how alkaline lysis works in this short and si...
10 Fun Hobbies for Scientists
#72 — Research requires imagination and strategy, and helpful distractions can give us the mental rest we need to recharge. Fun hobbies for scientists can provide insp...
Better Plasmid Purification: 11 Reasons Your Plasmid Yield is Low
#66 — Are your plasmid yields low? Not sure what is considered a good yield? Need help boosting the amount of plasmid you get from your preps? In this episode, we disc...
The Importance of Delegation for Scientists
#65 — Delegation is not just for managers! No matter where you are in your research career, there is an opportunity to delegate. In this episode, we discuss how you ca...
Top 5 of the Most Commonly Used Cell Lines
#62 — Do you want to use a cell line but are unsure where to start? Or perhaps you’re just curious about the most commonly used cell lines. Listen to our top 5 most co...
Get a Grip: Dealing with Sweaty Glove Hands
#61 — Fed up with fighting to put on another pair of gloves with sticky hands? Faced the embarrassment of giving a sweaty handshake? You need to listen to our top tips...
What Ponceau S Staining Can Reveal About Your Western Blot
#60 — There's nothing quite as frustrating as imaging a western blot only to find your bands are a wonky mess, your blot is covered in bubbles, or your bands are missi...
Plasmid Incompatibility: Should You Care?
#59 — Have you heard of plasmid incompatibility? Should you be worried about it? Listen to this episode of Mentors At Your Benchside to discover exactly what plasmid i...
The How and Why of Removing Serum From Your Media
#56 — Do you add serum, such as fetal bovine serum, to your cell culture medium? This ingredient may be critical for cell growth and proliferation, but it could negati...
Cell Passage Number Explained
#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 ...
The Dangers of UV Light in the Lab: Keep You and Your Experiments Safe
#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...
Problems Amplifying GC-rich regions? 5 Easy Solutions
#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 disco...
How Buffers Work—A Guide For Biologists
#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 wo...
What Is a Ct Value?
#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 c...
Different DNA Polymerases Explained
#45 — Taq polymerase is a fantastic all-rounder for standard PCRs, but what do you do if you need something a bit more specialist? In this episode of Mentors At Your B...
10 Good and Evil Ways to Use Your Dr Title
#44 — So you might be wondering why you bothered with all those years of failed experiments, committees, overbearing supervisors, thesis writing, and thesis defending....
How CRISPR-Cas13 Can Revolutionize Your RNA Research
#31 — CRISPR can do more than edit DNA. Cas13, a CRISPR-associated protein that can bind and cut RNA, provides the power of CRISPR for studying RNA. Listen to the epis...
Constant Current or Voltage in SDS-PAGE: The Great Debate
#28 — SDS-PAGE gels can be run at constant current, constant voltage or constant power. But which is best? Listen to this episode of Mentors at Your Benchside to disco...
The Basics: How Phenol Extraction of DNA Works
#25 — Phenol extraction of DNA is a commonly used method for removing proteins from nucleic acids, for example, to remove proteins from cell lysate during genomic DNA ...
Top 10 Tips for Viva Success
#16 — Is your viva on the horizon? Many people think viva exams are going to be painful. But what if you could make your viva go smoothly and maybe even enjoy it? List...
How to Measure and Improve Lab Accuracy and Precision
#14 — Do you know how accurate and precise your measurements are? Imprecise and inaccurate measurements can have a dramatic impact on your results. Listen to get 8 top...
How SDS-PAGE Works
#8 — You probably have or will use SDS-PAGE at some point to separate proteins, but do you really understand how this technique works? Knowing how SDS-PAGE works means...
17 Ways to Stop Pipetting Errors From Ruining Your Experiments
#2 — Micropipettes are the bread and butter instrument of a lab, helping you to accurately dispense minute amounts of liquid. But these tools are only trustworthy if t...
