The educational program to promote learning and scientific vocations in biotechnology and genetics Amgen TransferCiència has begun its fifth year this February edition in the Valencian Community (2023-2024 academic year). Five researchers, three women and two men, will give master classes and practical workshops for 140 4th year ESO and 1st and 2nd year high school students from 5 educational centers in the Community (4 in the province of Valencia and 1 in Alicante). Research and Innovation (FCRI in its Catalan acronym), aims to improve science learning, with special attention to biotechnology and genetics. style="text-align:justify">The Amgen TransferCiència team for this edition is made up of Cecilia Picazo, Alba Arévalo and Víctor Garrigós, from the Institute of Integrative Systems Biology (I²SysBio), from the CSIC-Universitat de València; Belén Llobregat, from the Institute of Agrochemistry and Food Technology (IATA-CSIC), and Borja Sáez de la Fuente, from the Institute of Biomedicine of Valencia (IBV-CSIC).

The program trains research staff to present students with learning situations that connect with real-life contexts, with the aim of promoting vocations in biotechnology and genetics. The activities will be carried out in centers in the city of Valencia (3); La Eliana (València) and Teulada (Alicante). They propose scenarios that connect different blocks of the curriculum, such as health and disease, immunology and genetics, and evolution in ESO; and knowledge of genetics, immunology, biotechnology and evolution in high school, with their research fields. Thus, students not only expand and consolidate their knowledge in the fields of genetics and biotechnology, but the program also allows them to have a real vision of science and the figure of the researcher.

Present for the fifth consecutive year in the Valencian Community, Amgen TransferCiència is a state-wide project with five editions of history. In this course, it has expanded coverage at the state level, and has reached 31 locations in Catalonia, the Community of Madrid, the Valencian Community, the Balearic Islands and Galicia. style="text-align:justify">The total scientific team is made up of 34 researchers (32% postdoctoral researchers, 65% predoctoral researchers and 3% senior researchers), 76% of whom are women, who will collaborate with 35 schools in these 5 autonomous communities. In addition, the program offers students the possibility of participating in a scientific communication contest, in which they can present a 2-minute video in which they explain a concept learned or the result of the practical workshop.

View and experience scientific research in class

Activities include experimental sessions in classrooms applied to different topics in the biotechnology field, with the support of the use of ELISA kits (enzyme immunosorbent assay), for the detection and quantification of specific substances in biological samples, such as proteins, antibodies and markers; PCR (polymerase chain reaction) to detect genetically modified organisms, and the electrophoresis technique to separate and isolate DNA, RNA or protein molecules based on their size and electrical charge.

“Putting students in contact with the researcher and explaining, in a close manner, the main current issues and work techniques of biotechnology is a very effective formula for guiding the interest and professional future of young people towards science in general,” explains Víctor Garrigós, from the Institute of Integrative Systems Biology (I²SysBio), from the CSIC-University of Valencia, member of Amgen TransferCiència, who will develop his practical class and workshop at the IES 26 Misericordia in Valencia. In his opinion, “knowing first-hand the advances we are making in genetics and biotechnology and their real projection is a very effective formula to stimulate the interest of students.” style="text-align:justify">

Alba Arévalo (I²SysBio – CSIC – UV)

“What is invisible to the eyes”

Educational center: IES Teulada, Teulada (Alicante), 2 until the 20th century it was believed that the presence of microorganisms in the human body only generated infections and diseases. With microbiota analysis, we know that half of our cells are human and the other half are bacterial. In the theoretical session, concepts of basic microbiology, human microbiota, probiotics and their relationship with human health will be discussed. In practice, the development of a probiotic vaccine will be considered, using microbiology, synthetic biology and immunology techniques, and the use of an ELISA kit. “Detection of Genetically Modified Organisms by PCR” style="text-align:justify">IES Patraix (Valencia), March 1

In the theoretical-practical session, we will begin by explaining the general bases of biotechnology. Next, the practical workshop will put students in the role of a researcher from a biotechnology company specialized in food safety who must detect potential genetically modified organisms (GMOs) and transgenic organisms in a batch with real samples of 4 different tomato crops. To do this, they will carry out practices with polymerase chain reaction (PCR) kits and agarose gel electrophoresis techniques. style="text-align:justify">Borja Sáez de la Fuente (IBV-CSIC)

“Looking for a needle in a haystack. Is it as difficult as it seems?”

IES Eliana, La Eliana (València), March 26

The students are part of a supposed laboratory that has a technique to detect the presence of genetically modified organisms (GMO). A supermarket hires them to identify products with GMOs. At the beginning of the theoretical class you will be presented with the situation, and from there you will be introduced to basic aspects related to genetic engineering and its different applications. In the practical workshop, they will have to be able to establish a protocol to carry out the task that has been set for them by applying a PCR kit for the detection of GMOs. “Restriction enzymes in biotechnology”

Educational center: IES 26 Misericordia (València), March 26

Placed as potential researchers of a biotechnology company that offers on-demand analytical services, students will have to carry out an agarose gel electrophoresis on a sample to determine if restriction enzymes have been isolated and purified (proteins isolated from bacteria that cut DNA sequences), which have digested the DNA of a bacteriophage virus and a plasmid (small circular DNA molecule found in bacteria and other microscopic organisms). The activity reviews the historical and technological evolution of biotechnology, and focuses on restriction enzymes. “In search of the “murderer/in@”

Parque Colegio Santa Ana (Valencia), pending date (February or April)

The activity assumes that there has been a murder. Instead of the crime, biological samples of the murderer are found. With these samples, students will be able to extract the DNA, amplify it, separate it, visualize it and compare it with other samples to determine, of the three possible suspects, who is the culprit. style='font-family:"Arial","sans-serif"'>

About elFCRI

The Catalan Foundation for Research and Innovation (FCRI) disseminates research and innovation among society to promote scientific culture, scientific-technical vocations among young people and entrepreneurship and public-private collaboration in R&I. style="text-align:justify">More information at www.fundaciorecerca.cat

About Amgen

Amgen is a pioneering biotechnology company committed to realizing the full potential of biology for those patients with serious diseases, discovering, developing, manufacturing and providing innovative human treatments. The approach begins with the use of tools such as advanced human genetics, to discover the complexities of the disease and understand the fundamentals of human biology. Amgen focuses on areas of high unmet medical need and leverages its expertise in biologics manufacturing to deliver solutions that improve health outcomes and improve people's lives. style="tab-stops:64.05pt">

More information: www.amgen.es and https://www.linkedin.com/company/amgen-españa.

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