Robby Schetlick
AP Biology
Ippolito
CE 22
4/19/18
Brigham and Women's Hospital. "3-D human 'mini-brains' shed new light on genetic underpinnings of major mental illness: Using human stem cells, researchers create 3-D model of the brain to study a mutation tied to schizophrenia, bipolar disorder and depression." ScienceDaily. ScienceDaily, 19 April 2018. <www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2018/04/180419141530.htm>.
The article I am reviewing is called is about the new use of “3-D mini brains” in research of mental disorders posted recently on sciencedaily. Researchers from Brigham and Women’s Hospital are using new technology and techniques to investigate a gene- DISC1- which when mutated is a likely factor in many mental illnesses. This is evidenced by many families with mental illness history all have mutations on this gene. What these researchers are essentially doing is using human stem cells to culture “mini brains” to model human brain development. Using this new technology, they can investigate the interactions in the human cells from a three dimensional perspective, which opens up many more new routes of investigation than previously available when technology only allowed for two dimensional models. After various testing described in the article, the researcher used the new model to conclude that the WNT pathway (which is a signaling pathway for patterning organs in development of the brain) may be responsible for observed structural disruptions in the DISC1 mutant brains. This opens many possibilities for future mental illness therapy, if the researchers can identify the problem more conclusively in the future.
This article is relevant to our society because of how it exemplifies technology as an important part of progressing in science. These researchers that were previously limited by 2D technology are now able to investigate and continue their research in literally a whole new dimension. Already, this has lead to discoveries and hypotheses regarding the brain topic. But on a larger scale, technology is becoming increasingly necessary in our lives, and now even more so in our development as a species. It is always important to continue investigating using new technologies, as eventually we will be able to cross over past roadblocks with ease by approaching them from a new angle with new technology.
The article is generally is a nice, simple, and eye catchy article. It is strong because it makes sure to define all its concepts and vocabulary so that the average reader can get the gist of the article. Although, it could be improved by trying to stick to its main points rather than get very specific, which detrated from the focus of the article, especially when it is clearly already compressed for length. It could be improved by cutting out all of the examples of the DISC1 experiments, and just going straight to the WNT conclusion, for example. Other than those minor errors, it’s a good article.
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ReplyDeleteSarah Goodell
ReplyDeleteMr. Ippolito
AP Bio: Current Event Comment
29 April, 2018
Current Event #23
Brigham and Women's Hospital. "3-D human 'mini-brains' shed new light on genetic
underpinnings of major mental illness: Using human stem cells, researchers create 3-D
model of the brain to study a mutation tied to schizophrenia, bipolar disorder and
depression." ScienceDaily. ScienceDaily, 19 April 2018.
.
This week, I read Robby’s review of the ScienceDaily article titled “3-D human 'mini-brains' shed new light on genetic underpinnings of major mental illness: Using human stem cells, researchers create 3-D model of the brain to study a mutation tied to schizophrenia, bipolar disorder and depression.” by Brigham and Women’s Hospital. In particular, Robby did three things well in his response. Firstly, Robby provided his audience with a great summary of the original article. By doing this, he prepares his audience for the rest of his review and ensures that his readers fully understand the topic at hand. Specifically, he thoroughly described the WNT pathway, which is an essential idea of the article. Secondly, Robby included a relevance paragraph that was very detailed and thoughtful. This helped express the importance of this topic and his review. Finally, Robby provided his readers with an in-depth critique. He successfully suggested how the original article could be improved, so in doing this, Robby prepared his audience before they read the article.
Although he wrote an in-depth and insightful reflection, Robby could have improved upon two aspects of his review. Firstly, Robby did not directly quote any researchers from the original article, nor the author of the article. Even though he did reference them, it would have made his review more credible if he had quoted established sources. Secondly, although Robby mentioned future testing that may be done, he could have talked more about the potential studies and what could be done in the future. If he had discussed this more in depth, Robby would have successfully answered any questions his readers may have had after reading his reflection.
I chose to read and to comment on Robby’s response because I am very interested in studies about mental illness. I believe that this is a very important topic to learn about, especially in America, because so many people have been diagnosed with mental illnesses and so many different kinds exist. I also found it interesting that scientists are no longer limited to 2-D technology. This fact proves that technology is still evolving and always will be, as long as humans strive to improve upon society. I did not know that “3-D human ‘mini-brains’” exited and I learned more about 3-D technology and how that has impacted studies relating to mental illness. I am excited to learn more about this topic in the future.
This comment has been removed by the author.
ReplyDeleteLuke Redman
ReplyDeleteMr.Ippolito
AP Biology
April 29th 2018
Current Event #23
Brigham and Women's Hospital. "3-D human 'mini-brains' shed new light on genetic underpinnings of major mental illness: Using human stem cells, researchers create 3-D model of the brain to study a mutation tied to schizophrenia, bipolar disorder and depression." ScienceDaily. ScienceDaily, 19 April 2018.
I chose to read Robbie’s review of "3-D human 'mini-brains' shed new light on genetic underpinnings of major mental illness: Using human stem cells, researchers create 3-D model of the brain to study a mutation tied to schizophrenia, bipolar disorder and depression." by the Brigham and Women’s Hospital.The article talks about how 3-D brains are shedding light on mental issues. He did a great job weaving quotes into his writing, along with how those quotes supported the topic. He also kept the language in the review reasonably simple, which enhanced the experience. Another thing he did well was critique the author, and gave reasonable criticisms.
While his review was very well written, there were some areas that he could have improved. He could have included more details about the discovery of the side effects,which would have enriched the overall experience of reading the review.Lastly, He could have explained better what the discovery meant for the average American.
I had no idea about this crazy discovery, or that you could even simulate mental disorders with 3-D brains.Overall, Robbie’s article was extremely well written, and I look forward to reading another one of his reviews.
Caitlin Mooney
ReplyDeleteAP Bio
Mr. Ippolito
9/5/18
Current Event 1
Brigham and Women’s Hospital“3-D Human 'Mini-Brains' Shed New Light on Genetic Underpinnings of Major Mental Illness.” ScienceDaily, ScienceDaily, 19 Apr. 2018, www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2018/04/180419141530.htm.
I read Robby’s review of the article “3-D human 'mini-brains' shed new light on genetic underpinnings of major mental illness: Using human stem cells, researchers create 3-D model of the brain to study a mutation tied to schizophrenia, bipolar disorder and depression” .This article describes the research that can be done on “mini brains” in order to learn more about mental illnesses. The content of the article was much improved because Robby was able to cite all of her facts from reputable sources. These sources included researchers at Brigham and Women’s hospital. Another positive aspect of this review was how he was able to summarize the article in a way that allowed the reader to understand such a complex topic. Robby was able to do this by describing the use of human stem cells to create the “mini brains”with clarity. Finally, I liked how Robby was able to critique the author in a considerate way at the end by saying how the article was too long and not very specific.
Robby did a great job on this review, however he has room for improvement. One example of how Robby could have improved his review would have been to include a third paragraph about his thoughts on the article. Additionally, as a reader, I think that Robby should have quoted parts of the article, if he had done this it would have helped the reader understand the point of view of the author better.
When I first saw this review I was immediately taken aback by the idea of “mini brain”, this concept was extremely interesting since I have never heard anything like it before. Before reading this I also had no idea how much sciences were evolving in order to study people with mental illnesses, and I find it very important that we as a society are taking steps to aid people with disorders that have had little research done upon them.