Question: what is your favorite thing to examin?

Marisol Collins answered on 15 Nov 2016:

Great question! I really enjoy the work I do examining samples from animals to see if they carry a particular parasite. I bet you are surprised to hear that my favourite thing to examine is poo! 😀
I find it really interesting that I can take a sample of smelly poo from a dog, and even if I can’t see a parasite there, I can do some tests to remove the DNA (material from the genes in the cells) of the parasite from the poo, multiply the DNA in a machine and then separate it from all the other DNA in a gel! This process has an incredibly long name, called a Polymerase Chain Reaction, but we call it PCR for short. Many areas of science will use this test to help identify DNA from a particular plant or organism if they are searching for it. It allows us to find it, even if there is just a tiny amount of DNA in a sample. Did you know that PCR is also used by forensic detectives to identify the DNA of criminals in a crime scene?