Scientists Uncover Connection Between Alzheimer’s and Immunity
September is World Alzheimer’s Month, and unfortunately we need Alzheimer’s research more than ever.
KentConnects Blog
Welcome to the KentConnects blog, where we provide tips, best practices, examples, and more helpful information to improve your processes, boost your efficiency, and make your lab work smarter and safer.
What the New White House Science Advisor Means for Researchers
On August 1, meteorologist Kelvin Droegemeier was nominated as the director of the White House Office of Science and Technology Policy (OTSP). The office plays a central role in determining research and development budgets, providing science and technology expertise for national policy, and coordinating the White House’s science agenda for government, higher education, and the private sector.
SomnoSuite® Low-Flow Vaporizer Offers Unique Ability to Use Either Compressed Gas or Room Air
Kent Scientific’s SomnoSuite Low Flow Anesthesia System not only uses a fraction of the isoflurane while maintaining stable levels of anesthesia for mice and rats, it has another, less well-known benefit: it does not require compressed gas in order to operate.
Animal Research Plays a Key Role in Developing Important Vaccines
Animal models have been used in biomedical research for hundreds of years, and some of the most important breakthroughs animal research has made possible are vaccines. Research with mice, rats, and other animals has led to vaccines for polio, several types of meningitis, typhus, whooping cough, smallpox, tetanus, measles, cholera, and many more.
Gender: The Hidden Variable in Animal Research
Every scientist that has conducted experimental research with animal subjects knows that an essential part of any experiment is determining which variables have the potential to affect the outcome. Ideally the variables not being tested are known and controlled, but in some cases unknown variables have caused skewed and unexpected results.
One of the variables that continues to pop up as an influencing factor in research is gender.
The Importance of STEM Mentoring for Kids
When you were a child, what did you want to be when you grew up? According to the Bureau of Labor Statistics, kids’ top dream jobs include dancer, actor, musician, athlete, detective, and astronaut.
While all of these jobs are legitimate careers (wizard and superhero did not make the list, at least), most are extremely difficult to transform from a dream into a real career. But #4 on the list of kids’ dream jobs was more promising: scientist.
The Importance of Physiological Monitoring in Preclinical Research
Laboratory animals are a valuable resource. Using mice and rats as surgical models for biomedical research represents a significant investment of time and money. Researchers who are privileged to work with live animals bear a responsibility to respect their resources and understand that it’s important to do everything possible to achieve the most accurate data, while at the same time maximizing the safety of the animals.
The Future for Women in STEM Fields
In 2017, James Damore, an engineer at Google, was fired for posting a memo claiming that women were biologically and psychologically less suited to working in high-tech career fields.
The memo got Damore fired from Google, but the idea that women are less capable of performing at high levels in technical fields isn’t a new one. Like Damore, those who have propagated the stereotype say it’s “backed by science,” citing questionable claims about brain structure, inherent psychological traits, or even temperament.
Research with Mice Leads to Potential for Non-Addictive Painkiller
Researchers at Indiana University are working on a way to use the brain to suppress pain without unwanted side effects such as addiction or a marijuana high.
Animal Research Plays a Key Role in 2017 Nobel Prize
The Nobel Prize in Physiology or Medicine is awarded annually for outstanding discoveries in the fields of life sciences and medicine that benefit humankind.
This year, the prize was awarded jointly to three Americans—Michael Rosbash, Jeffrey C. Hall, and Michael W. Young—for their discoveries of molecular mechanisms controlling the circadian rhythm, the internal biological clock that regulates critical functions such as behavior, hormone levels, sleep, body temperature and metabolism.