Training Programs

Project-based courses provide an introduction to complicated resume-building techniques in the context of unique, meaningful research experiments to yield publishable results.
"The Process of Science Education Should Mirror the Process of Science Itself." David Moss.
Training in specific techniques that are common to all biotechnology is necessary for many technical positions and exposure to hands on training can also be a positive educational tool.  We intend to develop training aspects to the lifeedu portfolio that will compliment the rest of our services.  In addition, we recognize a growing need to materials that would be useful to such a program, whether that is offered by life edu or developed by others. We are in the process of developing videos and digitized demonstrations on specific techniques (such as PCR, gene cloning, and others) that depicts these techniques as conducted in a laboratory setting that is more akin to a Martha Stewart/Julia Childs type cooking show than the usual dry and boring lab demonstrations that are more familiar. 
We have developed Project Based curriculum that is established to accomplish:

• Specific training for specialized skills
• Training in a practical problem solving context that is real world
• Resume building
• Project accomplishment

An Example of a Project Based Training course in Agricultural Biotechnology:A new project based laboratory course in biotechnology emphasizing investigative learning: “Modern Techniques in Genetic Engineering”

A comprehensive experiential two-semester course, titled Modern Techniques in Genetic Engineering has been designed (materials available on request) which present current topics and approaches in genetic modification (as a lecture component) and techniques for genetic engineering and analysis of plant gene expression (as a laboratory component). 

The lecture component provides historical background to genetic engineering and examines many aspects of the growing field of plant biotechnology and transgenic plant biology including basic and applied research areas, patents and intellectual property, commercialization, and agricultural and environmental considerations. The laboratory component of the course presents state-of-the-art techniques for plant biotechnology through an intensive hands-on approach. All of the techniques developed in this course is for the purpose of resume building, skill acquisition, and project accomplishment. The lecture component will meet for one hour twice a week. 

The laboratory will involve two four-hour sessions per week taught out of a plant transgenics facility to be developed. Each student would be given two gene constructs in the beginning of the first semester to be introduced into either rice or turfgrass.  The students will work in pairs who will also meet on a TBA basis for each team.  This way the laboratory can accommodate 10-15 students conducting long procedures, such as microprojectile bombardments, tissue culture, and DNA analysis. The laboratory portion of the course could be presented in the context of a large research project conducted by the students in the course on a specific topic that is currently pertinent in agricultural plant biotechnology. 

The scope of work conducted in the proposed project can all be conducted within the context of the two-semester laboratory course and consists of two parts: in the first part the various constructs will be introduced into turf or rice embryogenic cells and transgenic plants will be regenerated; in the second part, the molecular analysis and tissue specific gene expression characteristics will be determined.  They would conduct all the necessary cell culture and transgenic procedures to recover stably transformed cells by the end of the first semester.  They would return for the second semester to conduct the molecular characterization and plant regeneration in the second semester.  It is expected that the focus of these projects will change yearly.  An example of an experiential research project designed for the laboratory component of Modern Techniques in Genetic Engineering titled: Analysis of Various Promoters Used to Drive Gene Expression in Transgenic Rice and Turfgrass will be implemented in the first year.

Each student would be required to summarize the work in terms of a poster presentation that would be published at an international conference.  Ideally each gene construct would lead to a publication, and potentially even a US patent. The techniques presented in this course would provide students with an excellent resume for future career opportunities in biotechnology.

The laboratory portion of the course is structured to integrate the goals of a selected specific research project with the training, such that the generated results will be meaningful in the real world. This laboratory experience provides students with all the necessary techniques currently used in the growing industry of agricultural biotechnology as well as approaches for basic research using transgenics. 

This exposure allows students to prepare themselves for career options at BS or MS levels, and provides the necessary tools for advanced graduate thesis research utilizing modern genetic approaches in the plant sciences

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