RSC ChemNet Events
Dates for
your diary
Café scientifique: drugs
in sport
2 October 2013 19:00–21:00
Much Wenlock, Shropshire
Simon Cotton will discuss the
molecules at the heart of the
drugs in sport tale.
http://rsc.li/16uOYEb
Scifest – the chemistry
winners – celebration event
14 November 2013
10:30–14:30
Waterford Institute of
Technology, Ireland
This event showcases the
winning projects of the
Pharmachemical Ireland award.
Afterwards, Paul McCrory will
demonstrate entertaining ways
of understanding science.
http://rsc.li/16uPG4j
C
hemistry enhancement day
14 November 2013
09:00–12:45
University of Central Lancashire,
Preston
Enrich your understanding
of both of chemistry and
biochemistry with specialist
lectures, laboratory
demonstrations and tours around
world-leading laboratories.
http://rsc.li/16uQWoa
10 | The Mole | September 2013
Francesca Burgoyne takes a look at what the
winners of an RSC prize have been up to on
their laboratory placements
At The Big Bang in
March, two very talented
students were awarded
the Royal Society of
Chemistry Prize in the
prestigious National
Science and Engineering
Competition. Josh Sauer
and Emma Sharman
won £500 each for their
projects on molecular
level data processing
and improving diabetes
treatments respectively,
as well as a week’s
work experience in a
chemistry laboratory.
Find out in their own words what they got up to in the lab:
Josh Sauer
‘My A-level background was exclusively geared to
becoming a physical scientist of some description,
so I wanted to use this opportunity to open my mind
to other, less familiar areas of science. I chose a
biochemistry placement under the supervision of
Ulrike Eggert at Kings College London.
‘Dr Eggert’s research group is interested in the
chemical biology of the final step of cell division
– cytokinesis. One area they are investigating is a
© The Big Bang Fair 2013
Molecules of murder and
UCAS clinic
1 October 2013 17:45–20:00
University of Birmingham
Bring your UCAS questions to
the admissions tutors. What are
they looking for in a personal
statement? How do you impress
in an interview? The event is
followed by a lecture on the
molecules of murder by
John Emsley.
http://rsc.li/16uK3TZ
A winning experience
signalling pathway, the ‘Rho pathway’, which controls
cytokinesis. The group have discovered several
chemicals called ‘Rhodblocks’ that disrupt this
pathway so that they can see how particular proteins
take part in Rho signalling during cytokinesis.
‘During my placement I was taught about ‘RNA
interference’ (RNAi), a technique used by cell biologists
to silence specific genes. This in turn stops the
production of specific proteins. My project for the week
used a screening technique designed to observe either
The Big Bang
The Big Bang is the largest celebration of science,
technology, engineering and maths for young people
in the UK. The event brings science to life through
exciting interactive exhibits, demonstrations and
talks. Organisations from across the scientific spectrum give a flavour of the real scale of engineering
and science in the UK.
The event also hosts the finals of the National Science
and Engineering Competition. Come and find out
what other students have been up to with their
projects and investigations.
The 2014 fair will take place at The NEC, Birmingham,
from 13 to 16 March. It’s a great day out and there’s
no entry charge: www.thebigbangfair.co.uk
www.rsc.org/TheMole
Mole day
On 23 October each year,
from 6:02 am to 6:02 pm,
people across the world
celebrate Mole Day.
A mole is the number of
carbon atoms in 12.0 g of
carbon-12. This number is
huge – 6.02 x 1023 (602
followed by 21 zeros).
the suppression or enhancement of the RNAi effects
following treatment with the Rhoblock compounds.
6.02 x 1023 is known as
Avogadro’s number, named
after Lorenzo Romano
Amedeo Carlo Avogadro. He
first postulated that equal
volumes of any gas, under
the same conditions of
temperature and pressure,
contain equal numbers of
molecules.
Fly cells and microscopes
‘The technique involved staining samples of fly cells so
I could observe different parts of the cells fluorescing
under a microscope. We concluded from the data
that some of the Rhodblock derivatives were having
minimal effect on cells and needed to be at a much
higher concentration. To confirm our findings we also
conducted the same experiment on live human cancer
cells that had previously been treated with a protein
that makes them fluorescent.
‘I was introduced to spinning disk confocal microscopy,
which is able to take extremely high resolution pictures
in different focal planes. This is then used to build up a
detailed 3D ‘holograph’ of the sample. We viewed films
of the cells struggling to divide and again noted that the
Rhodblock derivative was having little observable effect.
them by customers or that have been produced by the
in-house laboratories.
Detecting water
Emma Sharman
‘During my week I gained a real insight into
analytical chemistry in an industrial setting. I learnt
how companies such as Onyx Scientific contribute
towards the pioneering work of some of the largest
pharmaceutical companies in the world.’
Emma’s placement was somewhere completely
different: she worked with a company that is involved
in manufacturing and research for large and small
pharmaceutical chemistry companies across the world.
‘Onyx Scientific is a company that provides
pharmaceutical chemistry services – customers
provide the company with a project brief, outlining
what work they would like to have completed. Some
customers ask Onyx to follow a method and produce
a particular substance: others want them to be
involved in the development process of making new
chemical compounds.
‘During my placement I was mainly based in the
analytical lab where I was shown how the analytical
machines work and what they are used for. The
analysts use a variety of different techniques to
examine chemical substances that have been sent to
www.rsc.org/TheMole
‘I had the opportunity to see a Karl Fischer titrator
in action – an instrument that can determine trace
amounts of water in a sample. I was also shown how
to service a liquid chromatography instrument. This is
used to separate components in a mixture in order to
identify and quantify each chemical.
Find out more at
www.moleday.org and
test your calculating
skills with this set of
mole calculations:
http://rsc.li/1bbwXxX
© the hitman
‘I learnt a huge amount about chemical biology over
the week and I was very humbled and honoured to
have assisted Dr Eggert’s team. I greatly enjoyed
learning about the complexities involved with
cytokinesis and the week has opened my eyes to many
fascinating and diverse research opportunities outside
physical science.’
It’s probably one of the
most important numbers
a chemist can know, as it
allows us to define how
much of a substance you
have. For example, if you
had a mole of sugar cubes
they would cover the
Earth’s surface to a depth
of 1170 m!
Have a go yourself!
The National Science and Engineering Competition
is open to all 11–18 year old students. It rewards
students who have achieved excellence in a science,
technology, engineering or maths project.
The competition is open for entries from January to
October each year. The chosen finalists are invited to
showcase their work to thousands of people at The
Big Bang Fair in March.
Entry is now open for the 2013–14 competition, so
why not give it a go? www.nsecuk.org
September 2013 | The Mole | 11