What is Bio21 Institute?
Bio21 Molecular Science & Biotechnology Institute (short Bio21 Institute) is a bioscience research institute in Parkville Precinct, attached to The University of Melbourne. The institute houses researchers from various departments in the university involved in cutting edge medical research.
What do people in Bio21 Institute do?
Bio21 Institute is a medical research institute. Researchers in Bio21 perform health-related biotechnology research using input from their field of expertise, be it biochemistry/molecular biology, chemistry, nanotechnology or engineering. With capabilities in key platform technologies, the institute provides opportunity to develop interdisciplinary research. Researchers in Bio21 have interest in the following areas:
- drug discovery and medicinal chemistry
- nanobiotechnology
- dental biotechnology - oral health science
- environmental & agricultural biotechnology - safe pesticides
- free radical chemistry & biotechnology
- health sciences - immunity, cancer, ageing...
- anti-infectives - vaccine, antibiotics, antifungals...
- neuroscience & neurodegenerative diseases - Alzheimers
The Bio21 Institute building features an atrium with biologically inspired architecture.
You can tell that each level features structure reminiscent of mitochondria and endoplasmic reticulum.
We were brought into the labs containing high tech equipments.
This piece of instrument is called a mass spectrometer. It's used to measure the molecular mass of substances. The machine pictured above uses the time of flight technique - telling the molecular mass of a substance by measuring the time taken for the particles to travel in the (tall) tube under a constant electric field.
We moved on into the basement where Metabolomics Australia is located. Inside the labs are several chromatographs.
A sampler for gas chromatography (GC). It has a needle that draws sample and inject it into the device for analysis.
Agilent Technologies - a household name among labs.
Down in an underground chamber houses the NMR lab. It's named "NMR Cave" lol.
Looks like a space capsule ready to take off but it's really an NMR spectrometer.
NMR stands for nuclear magnetic resonance. It works by making use of magnetic properties of atomic nuclei. To know more, head here.
My favourite shot of the day, the cozy sofas in the atrium.
Will you want to take a look at
Thanks to Dr. Dӧne Onan of Department of Biochemistry and Molecular Biology of University of Melbourne for organising this trip.
Interested to study biochemistry in university? Take the subjects of biology and chemistry in your school today!
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