Chemistry Professor Maria DeRosa’s group is a finalist in a competition for Science Magazine that asked students to “Dance their PhD.” Their video was voted the best in the chemistry category and they have won a $500 prize.
“It was quite a team effort to explain scientific terms like aptamers through dance,” explains Dr. DeRosa. “I knew my team would come up with something quite innovative and they did.”
Richard Losick, a molecular biologist at Harvard and one of the judges, said this video was his top pick, “because it effectively integrated the concept of what happens during the process being depicted with the movement of the dancers. The dance was enjoyable and humourous to watch in and of itself. I am planning to show it in my molecular biology lecture.”
Dr. DeRosa’s research examines a type of nucleic acid called aptamers that can bind tightly to a specific molecule. Aptamers come from the greek aptus meaning to fit. She and her team are using chemistry tools to understand how these pieces of DNA or RNA can fold into certain shapes that make pockets for these targets. This information can then be used to design useful devices out of these nucleic acids, like biosensors or smart therapeutics. Given increasing concerns about infectious diseases, bioterrorism agents and environmental contaminants, there is an urgent need to develop these kinds of innovative sensing tools for the rapid and accurate detection of these substances.
The judges will announce the winner next month at the Imagine Science Film Festival in New York City. But you can vote for your favorite now at http://news.sciencemag.org/sciencenow/2010/09/dance-your-phd-finalists-announce.html