The human body is made up of over 30 trillion cells, and we still aren鈥檛 sure what each does. Figuring it out requires sifting through a whole 鈥渆cosystem鈥� of tissues and organs. How does one even begin to approach a task this complex? Enter: the , part of the at 黑料吃瓜资源 (CSHL). Celebrating its 10th anniversary this year, the course trains students in the state-of-the-art practice of studying health and disease by examining individual cells.
Single-cell analysis has taken the world of biology by storm over the past decade. However, the name is something of a misnomer, course instructor explains. 鈥淲e’re not just measuring one cell鈥攚e’re measuring tens of thousands,鈥� he says. 鈥淚magine you start with a smoothie, but now you have a bowl of fruit. You deconstructed it鈥攖hat鈥檚 single-cell analysis. You learn a lot more about what鈥檚 in the smoothie when you can take apart the pieces.鈥�
If only it were so simple! The field is constantly evolving. 鈥淭here’s a lot of technical hurdles on every level鈥攅ngineering, physics, and molecular biology,鈥� McConnell says. In fact, single-cell analysis has advanced so quickly that one of the cutting-edge technologies taught this year was developed by an alum of the 2015 course, Iain Clark.
Indeed, the exchange of ideas between students and teachers is a central component of the course. One student, Soma Dash, notes that this year鈥檚 participants brought a 鈥渉uge breadth of research experience鈥� to the lab. 鈥淲e had an eclectic collection of questions we were interested in, compelling the rest of the group to learn something new and unexpected,鈥� she says.
Written by: Luis Sandoval, Communications Specialist | [email protected] | 516-367-6826