r/Biochemistry 13m ago

Career & Education Is molecular biology mostly procedural?

Upvotes

Hello, I am about to graduate with a degree in biomedical science and I am interested in molecular biology and computational biology. The thing is I like conceptual thinking and creativity and dislike repetitive work, procedures and troubleshooting. Would computational biology be better for me?


r/Biochemistry 48m ago

Career & Education What can I do with a biochemistry bachelor's degree?

Upvotes

Hello! I'm graduating this spring with a bachelor's degree in biochemistry from University of Houston. I was going to apply to dental schools but now I'm reconsidering my career goals. During my undergrad I did work in a research lab at UT school of dentistry in the biomedical sciences and craniofacial diseases department, I liked it so much that made me now consider a research career. So my question is what kind of master or PhD I can do after my biochem bachelor that would level up my education. I was thinking about bioinformatics sciences.

I want something that uses software, statistics, and algorithms to study biological data, especially genetics, genomics, and protein biology. Analyze DNA, RNA, or protein sequences. Study gene expression (e.g., from RNA-seq data). Build models of biological pathways or molecular interactions. That's the field that interest me the most but I'm not sure if that's what they do or they other things. There are just a lot of broad things in the biochemistry/biology field and I'm unsure about the paths.

Also, what kind of jobs that I can work in right after I graduate with a bachelor's degree that is related to Bioinformatics? Is it worth?

I don't want something like a research assistant or lab technician where they only follow protocols and that's it. Plus they don't make money a lot, I would make the same thing when I was working full time as a dental assistant and that's without a bachelor's degree. I want something that I could grow in in the science field and research (I'm dreaming big lol😅)

I'd appreciate it if you could share your thoughts about it or if you have experience in the field!

Thank you!!


r/Biochemistry 1h ago

Docking a specific ligand with alphafold3

Upvotes

I want to dock a ligand (small molecule) to a protein with Alphafold3 that's not in the ligand list of the Af3 server. To be specific, the entire structure with the ligand has already been crystallized, so what I actually want to do is to dock a protein to that ligand-protein (active confirmation) with Af3.

I know that the Af3 has been open sourced and can be downloaded locally (so I can input the specified ligand), unfortunately I don't have a Nvidia GPU so I can't run it. Any ideas? Thanks.


r/Biochemistry 1h ago

please help me w my western blot

Upvotes

I’m trying to detect a ~55 kDa protein in Nicotiana benthamiana leaf extract using an anti-FLAG antibody. I’ve run SDS-PAGE (12% gel), transferred to PVDF membrane, and blocked with 5% milk in TBST for 1 hour at room temp. Then I incubated with primary antibody (1:1000) overnight at 4°C.

Problem is, I’m getting either: 1. No signal at all (not even in the positive control lane), or 2. A bunch of high background and some faint smears instead of a clean band.

I’ve tried adjusting antibody concentrations and washing more thoroughly, but I’m still stuck. Is it possible I’m overloading my gel or using the wrong blocking agent for this antibody?


r/Biochemistry 7h ago

I despise lab work

2 Upvotes

Hi guy! With nearing my end to first year at university, i have hated labwork the entireeeee time it makes me want to pull my eyes and brains out, i can do allot of the different techniques but i hate how tedious everything is however I did enjoy going to my lectures and doing coursework, ur probably thinking then why pick biochemistry😭 but can people give me career options where my biochemistry course will be useful and doesnt involve any labwork. Much appreciated 🙏🙏


r/Biochemistry 1d ago

Going back to school in Biochemistry as a mature student

64 Upvotes

I am currently 29, never finished college but am planning to go back for next year. Originally, I was in an art program and dropped out to pursue my own career. Now I am at a point where I want to go back and finish college but am restarting completely and decided on Biochemistry because it interested me the most. I had good grades in my chemistry and physics during high school and have self studied a lot on human anatomy as I work as a personal trainer as a side gig. I joined this subreddit to sort of brush up on concepts but I find a lot of the material goes over my head. I want to really get a head start before starting school because it has been so long since I did any science or math class. Does anyone have any suggestions? I thought of buying Lehninger’s principles of biochemistry but I wonder if that is even too advanced to begin with.


r/Biochemistry 16h ago

Does this make sense?

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5 Upvotes

Does this sentence make sense? I don’t know if receptor expression necessarily aligns with higher levels of the molecule that acts on it


r/Biochemistry 9h ago

I'm taking Orgo 1 and 2 in the Summer and I need Advise!!!

1 Upvotes

The title pretty much sums it. I'm taking both Orgo 1 and 2 in the summer in two 5.5 week blocks. I have 22 days to prepare if needed. I'm really nervous because everyone says it's a very hard class, but I recognize that some people might be overexaggerating. I am currently taking GenChem 2 and haven't done too bad for myself, but I also am aware that that doesn't necessarily translate to Orgo(especially because I'm taking it accelerated).

I'm just looking for some advice, realism about my situation, and potentially any optimism/encouraging words(However if you think I'm done for, I'd like your opinion as well). Thanks for your time, and I will deeply appreciate any responses.


r/Biochemistry 22h ago

Career & Education Lipids

5 Upvotes

What is the lipid to protein ratio on various membranes? Can someone assist me in answering this question with depth to the topic?
Thanks ^.^


r/Biochemistry 22h ago

Career & Education Lipids

0 Upvotes

What is the lipid to protein ratio on various membranes? Can someone assist me in answering this question with depth to the topic?
Thanks ^.^


r/Biochemistry 1d ago

Fixed-time vs. biomass-triggered induction for E. coli protein expression systems at production scale

3 Upvotes

Does anyone here work at a company where there is a large-scale (>100L) E. coli recombinant protein production process that runs at a regularly scheduled interval?

I have been doing research all day trying to understand if these production-scale processes typically use fixed-time induction or biomass-triggered induction. What I mean is: Does induction happen at a predefined time point (e.g. 4 hours in), or is it triggered by a measured process variable like OD, pH, or conductivity?

I would assume most processes are biomass-triggered to maximize yields, but does that not introduce quite a lot of operational inefficiencies downstream due to variability in timing?


r/Biochemistry 1d ago

I’m taking bio chem this summer how bad it is gonna me

8 Upvotes

Hey y’all I’m taking bio chemistry this summer , and I just wanna know how it will it be. RN I’m more than half way one with orgo 2 and I find it pretty easy and understandable. So that does that mean bio chem will be chill or it will be harder? Does it have anything to do with orgo at all?


r/Biochemistry 1d ago

Urea Cycle

1 Upvotes

My professor said the urea cycle does not a rate limiting enzyme per se. It’s a substrate driven cycle.

I’m working on a project covering summarizing it and I’m just plan confused.

Textbook is saying carbamoyl phosphate synthetase I is the rate limiting enzyme. And it’s also activated by arginine ultimately by activating N-acetylglutamate which activates CPSI.

I think I should just restate what the professor said but combine that these components need to be available to move the urea cycle forward.


r/Biochemistry 1d ago

Career & Education What's the best way to start studying Biochem?

6 Upvotes

I'm new to biochemistry and I originally planned on a physics/engineering related course but a job in biochemistry seemed promising and interesting to me so I thought of choosing Biochem instead.

Are there any good websites or online resources I can access (preferably for free) that can aid me in learning Biochemistry?

What core topics or essential information about biochemistry should I know and in what order can you suggest I should learn about biochem?


r/Biochemistry 1d ago

Do you struggle to stay accountable and study in BioChem? I used to too until I found this wholesome community

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0 Upvotes

I found a discord community, in which you can join calls with likewise people wanting to study with others. You can turn your face/desk cam on, or screenshare on to keep yourself not getting distracted! You can also join scheduled sessions :) I'm excited to see you there!


r/Biochemistry 1d ago

How to study Harper's Illustrated Biochemistry.

4 Upvotes

irst-year med student here. I'm struggling to keep up with the fast-paced learning system, especially with biochemistry. The textbook feels like an ocean of knowledge, a good part of which isn’t even considered important—so reading the chapters doesn’t make much sense, and they’re really long. My university lectures feel useless since they just skim through a PowerPoint. Are there any good lectures available online for this? What’s the best way to study it?


r/Biochemistry 2d ago

Research RNA function follows form – why is it so hard to predict? | Nature

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nature.com
44 Upvotes

An article reviewing the difficulty in understanding RNA structures (they're a lot trickier than protein structures) and the efforts to solve this using AI tools.


r/Biochemistry 1d ago

Weekly Thread Apr 05: Cool Papers

2 Upvotes

Have you read a cool paper recently that you want to discuss?

Do you have a paper that's been in your in your "to read" pile that you think other people might be interested in?

Have you recently published something you want to brag on?

Share them here and get the discussion started!


r/Biochemistry 2d ago

A silly question on how to prepare solutions

35 Upvotes

So a few days ago i had a clash with one of the Phd students. She was saying that a solid solution must be prepared by weighing the solid solute and adding in the complete volume of the solvent (eg - to prepare 3% NaCl sol., u need to add in 3gm of NaCl into 100ml of water). Well what I had learnt was to always dissolve the solid solute into a small quantity of solvent and then make up the volume to the desired level using the solvent (eg- to prepare 3% NaCl sol., you weigh 3gm of NaCl and add a small quantity of water to dissolve. Once dissolved transfer it to a volumetric flask or a measuring cylinder and make up the volume to 100 ml using water).

Which one of these is the right way of making a solution?


r/Biochemistry 2d ago

blackcurrants juice turning into jelly

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11 Upvotes

was cleaning out my great grandfathers celler after he died and we found a bunch of bottled wine and juice from the 50s-00s. turns out all the blackcurrants juice has turned into a jelly like substance. Any explanation for why this has happened? From what i now its only a mixture of blackcurrants and sugar cooked together.


r/Biochemistry 1d ago

A question regarding the affect light on metabolism, its related claims versus the actual facts

1 Upvotes

Not entirely sure a meta discussion is allowed here but here we go..

It is not outlandish of an idea that like its precursors human biology too has evolved to respond to light, its different spectrums, in different biochemical ways.. we have our circadian cycles, we have vitamin-d production, we have our bodys heat management system, etc. We can see a range of the spectrum, varying minutely across people of different individuals and ages.. Also, in modern science it's well proven that light (like any other energy source) can totally trigger a chemical reaction in the right and sufficient conditions and our body is full of these processes right..

Following is a 7 year old seminar of American neurosurgeon and opthalmologist Jack Kruse. He asserts that UVA light actively drives our bodies hormone production, while too much blue light actively affects this, which leads to a worse metabolism, and therefore leading to more fat.

I understand people would not necessarily want to watch an entire video before answering, but I insist.

https://youtu.be/d7qjh4BIGbc?si=fnDnZS3YL3YMFGAp

I just want to learn more since while a lot of jargon got thrown around, with parts consistently making sense, however I fail at the places where cosmic analogies were used to explain biochemistry ideas, and it felt like a stretch and put me off.

Thanks for your replies!


r/Biochemistry 2d ago

NADH ATP equivalent (Shouldn't it be 2,75?)

0 Upvotes

In textbooks the ATP equivalent of NADH is often said to be 2,5 (when it is not rounded up to 3). The reasoning is that Complex 1,3 and 4 Pumps 10H+ out of the cell (in bacterial) and you need 4H+ to generate one ATP.

Complex-4 consumes 4H+ and pumps 2H+(for the reduction of 1/2 O2)

Wouldn't the 2H+ that is consumed to reduce the 1/2 O2 also have an impact on the proton gradient?

Shouldn't it be a ATP equivalent of 2,75?

My prof says it is (without rounding up) an ATP equivalent of 3 but I think his knowledge is just not up to date


r/Biochemistry 2d ago

How to make transparent molecule shape outline? (PYMOL)

3 Upvotes

I'm doing an assignment using PYMOL and I want to make the outline of my molecule show as a shadow-y transparent outline as shown below.

How I want it to look

However, when I have made surface parts that are 80% transparent, it looks like this.

My molecule

This has also been uploaded to SketchFab after using PyMol so I don't know if thats the issue instead? Just wanted to see if anyone knows how to do this :)


r/Biochemistry 2d ago

Research

0 Upvotes

Suggest me some free journals for research publications, in the field of health sector , especially biochemistry, that’s scopus or web of science journals.

researchpaper #publication


r/Biochemistry 3d ago

ammonium sulfate precipitation

3 Upvotes

Hi, everyone. I'm going to do an ammonium sulfate precipitation for later purification using a nickel ion column.

My question is: should I do dialysis before submitting the column to my HPLC?

I'm asking this because the column manual doesn't mention whether or not it supports the presence of ammonium sulfate. I've seen in some articles that people use dialysis, but in others, they don't.

What's your suggestion?