Eew, gross, no way, maybe... worms?

Though I have worked with mice in research for more than seven years, I decided to learn a completely new organism during this rotation - C. elegans, endearingly known as "the worm." Today was the first day in the worm lab and I learned how to pick them up and transfer them from plate to plate. It's not necessarily an easy task at first. I have to admit I was a little grossed out in the beginning. Especially when I thought I lost one. I had to wash my hands twice before lunch. This is going to be interesting.

After a few weeks of cloning genes in yummy bacteria, I will learn how to make the worms turn green. And then we can see where our gene of interest is expressed. Maybe I'll turn them blue instead since that is my favorite color. Should be fun! Maybe I can post a picture of the colored worms once they are made, without any unpublished details of course.