Update 10/7/23 – Katalin Kariko and Drew Weissman have been awarded the 2023 Nobel Prize in Physiology or Medicine for their 2005 paper that is the basis for the mRNA exercise (see sample screenshot below). The announcement highlighted Fig 3D of that paper (simulated in Part 3, step 12 of the mRNA exercise).
Updates 8/16/23
– Case It v705 is a Windows application that now runs on any Mac OS (including Ventura and Sonoma) with no time limit on use, via included free software – see the Download page for details.
– Case It Mobile is currently being expanded to enable students to analyze selected cases on smartphones and other mobile devices, without having to download Case It v705. A mobile version of Part 4 of the CRISPR exercise is also available.
Case It v705 performs common laboratory procedures on any DNA or protein sequence and can be downloaded free of charge for educational use. Sequences included with the download enable students to analyze a variety of cases with a focus on genetic and infectious diseases. The CRISPR exercise enables students to learn basic molecular biology techniques while recreating and analyzing Nobel Prize-winning research experiments. The first study to successfully use CRISPR to treat a genetic condition is analyzed in the ATTR exercise. The mRNA exercise enables students to recreate Nobel Prize-winning experiments that resulted in the development of mRNA vaccines.