sixth week

MONDAY:

We began today with a staff meeting at PHRII, where each of the interns gave a brief summary of their progress so far and discussed the challenges and successes we faced. Dr. Kiran and Dr. Vijaya also shared about the recent cases they had seen in the clinic. Dr. Purnima and Dr. Karl were able to give some really meaningful feedback, and here are a few of the broader takeaways I noted:

• Utilize your network effectively. If other people have expertise in fields you do not, seek them out! Don’t waste time reinventing the wheel.
• Know when to cut your losses. At some point, it becomes necessary to start fresh than keep on trying to fix a deeply broken system. Even though it’s difficult to sacrifice the time and effort committed up to this point, it’s often necessary to pivot your attention in order to develop a system that will repeatedly work.
• The importance of participatory action research. In academia, we have an ethical responsibility to give feedback to the communities when we conduct research. Our role is not just to go in, collect data and leave to present our findings in fancy conferences, returning when we need more data. Instead, we have to consider what comes after, collaboratively designing interventions along with the community to directly contribute to correcting the issues and deficiencies we’ve encountered during the research process.

Later that day, Anisa and I headed to JSS to conduct Nanodrop readings of the RNA samples we isolated using the acetone and QIAzol protocol. I spent the rest of the day combing through PubMed to find suitable primer sequences for the target miRNA we’ve chosen to study for this project.

TUESDAY

I spent all day at JSS Medical College to conduct the RNA isolation protocol with an initial acetone wash using the QIAgen Advanced Kit protocol. This will serve as a comparison to the RNA sample isolated last week using the QIAgen original kit protocol.

WEDNESDAY

Today, Anisa, Medha, and I went to the Council of Scientific and Industrial Research-Central Food Technological Research Institute (CSIR-CFTRI). There, we met with Sreeram, a PhD student working in the lab of Dr. Gopinath M S, to investigate plant non-coding RNAs in wound healing and skin diseases. Thanks to this collaboration organized by Dr. Subba Rao, they graciously invited us to visit their lab and supplied materials for us to conduct RT-qPCR with a few of our miRNA samples.

This meeting was so helpful!! After repeating miRNA isolations with little success or improvement in our RNA quality for the past few weeks, it had become very discouraging, but it was genuinely so refreshing to be able to discuss our project and troubleshoot our setbacks with someone familiar with working with miRNA. Sreeram went through each of the modifications we had already conducted, offered suggestions for a new TRIzol protocol, and explained the rationale behind each step; why certain centrifuge steps are carried out at lower temperatures or higher speeds, why we use 70% EtOH instead of other concentrations, etc. I’m very appreciative of the time he took out of his day and undoubtedly busy schedule to meet with us; this project is finally looking up!

THURSDAY

Anisa and I went to JSS again today to conduct miRNA isolation, implementing the suggestions that Sreeram gave us yesterday. On the way back to PHRII, we noticed huge crowds gathered along the road with herds of sheep. Anisa explained to me that this was due to Bakrid, an upcoming Muslim festival where sheep and goats are sacrificed as qurbani. After the ritual, the meat is divided into three parts and distributed among family, friends and neighbors, and the needy.

FRIDAY

We went over to CFTRI again today to meet with Dr. Gopinath to discuss next steps for our project, which will include replicating the TRIzol RNA isolation protocol. Anisa and I will each run the isolation in duplicates, as will Sreeram, so we can all compare the reproducibility of this SOP.

During this visit, I also had my first two-wheeler ride! Sandwiched between Medha and Anisa, it was exhilarating and terrifying at the same time.

After work, Dr. Kiran and her husband invited all of the interns to SAPA bakery. Their menu changes every week, so I was able to enjoy entirely new pastries this time around!

WEEKEND

Saturday morning, Nikhita, Samhita, and I set off on our weekend trip to Coorg! Our first stop was Bylakuppe, a Tibetan settlement home to the Namdroling Monastery Golden Temple. The inside of the temple was stunning and the sheer height of the Buddha statues was breathtaking.

After, we visited a coffee plantation, as Coorg is very well-known for their coffee and chocolate exports. On our tour, we learned about the various stages of the coffee bean planting and harvesting process and even had the opportunity to sample some coffee and chocolate!! In the gift shop afterwards, Nikhita, Samhita, and I each bought a block of chocolate for 200 rupees, definitely a steal!

We then arrived at Raja’s Seat, which translates to “Seat of the Kings”. Most of the view was obscured by fog, and our umbrellas barely held up in the wind and pouring rain!

For dinner, we visited a restaurant serving local Kodava cuisine and ordered the ubiquitous Coorg Pandi (pork) Curry. It was easily the spiciest meal I’ve had in India.

The next morning, we left from our homestay at Cauvery Suites for a 3-hour jeep safari in Mandalpatti. The views of the mountains were breathtaking and the jeep ride itself was exhilarating as we traveled along some extremely bumpy roads.

After visiting Abbi Falls, we drove to Sri Bhagandeshwara Temple, where we were stopped outside by a group of college-aged boys for pictures. It was slightly unusual since most of the people that I’ve passed on the streets in India don’t give me a second glance as a foreigner, and the majority of those who’ve stopped and stared are typically younger, school-aged children. Thankfully, Nikhita and Samhita were there with me too, and it turned out to be a very memorable and hilarious experience.

The last destination we visited was Talakaveri, considered to the source of the river Kaveri. By the time we arrived, it was pouring, and the steps to the temple were completely flooded with rain. Nevertheless, we decided to trek on, getting completely soaked in the process. When we returned to the car, we were all delirious from the rain and very thankful to have our Jim Jams to snack on during the ride back to Mysore.

Overall, I would highly recommend Coorg as a weekend trip! Props to Teju for coordinating the logistics!! It was incredibly fun, and we definitely came out of it with so many amazing memories.