Harry Perkins Institute Excursion
Last week, our Year 11 and 12 ATAR Human Biology students went on an excursion to the Harry Perkins Institute of Medical Research.
The Year 11 students began their day by playing two different games about Stem Cells and were given an insight into the developments and progress of stem cell research. Students then moved to the laboratory and were guided by a researcher through the laboratory technique to thaw, prepare and stain stem cells used for investigating liver cancer.
The Year 12 students simulated Polymerase Chain Reactions (PCR) in the dry lab, where they competed against another school to see how many copies of DNA they could make in a given time frame. They were then taken into the laboratory where they completed PCR and gel electrophoreses practicals and looked to see if there was a mutation that can sometimes cause melanomas in a patient's genes.
Students were given a tour of the Harry Perkins Institute to learn about the medical research that is happening and how advances in research directly affect the lives of patients.
This was a fantastic opportunity for our Human Biology students and we hope they have been inspired by this experience!
