Down for a little biochemistry slang? I don’t want you to feel left out when we talk jargon! From “spin down” to “crash out,” we use a lot of slang in the lab. We use it so much we forget that other people might not know what we’re taking about and, since some of it is not really “scientific-y” it can be harder to find definitions and connotations, etc. So I thought I’d try out quick post(s) explaining some common phrases. Starting with ones involving “down” and “out” – here’s what we’re talking about!
YouTube: https://youtu.be/_p95jqPJhi8
Down for a little biochemistry slang?
spin down: centrifuge something (for sedimentation (pelleting)
pull down: do an IP or related technique where you capture a molecule (usually to see what it’s bound to)
knock down: reversibly reduce expression of a gene, typically by lowering levels of its mRNA via RNAi (using siRNA, shRNA, etc.)
Don’t get left out when we talk jargon!
knock out (KO): permanently eliminate the expression of a gene using a gene editing tool like CRISPR
crash out: precipitate (come out of solution) – we usually only use this term for when it happens when we don’t want it to!
salt out: add a lot of salt to purposefully get something to precipitate (such as in some crystallization and purification strategies)
And don’t forget to…
geek out!
For more biochemistry terms defined: http://bit.ly/bumblingbiochemistglossary
If you have suggestions for other terms and abbreviations, let me know! You can add them to this doc: https://docs.google.com/document/d/197Ef7y1rSW7FkAL2BHHYOyQgrtWfo3lsQ7S9NPT8O10/edit?usp=sharing
Today was just kinda a test-out and I may do more of these short term explainers in the future if people find it helpful
more about centrifugation: https://bit.ly/lab_centrifuges & https://youtu.be/xCu7xDfyBBw
more about knock down & knock out: https://bit.ly/knockdownvsknockout & https://youtu.be/YgCiYfjQzxw
more about crashing out: https://bit.ly/crashingout ; YouTube: https://youtu.be/RDo5P5Wsces
more about salting out: http://bit.ly/ionicstrengthsalting
