DIY DIAGNOSTICS

Author: Nicholas Wong

  • JOIN DIY DIAGNOSTICS AND BECOME PART OF OUR FAMILY! WE WANT YOU!

    JOIN DIY DIAGNOSTICS AND BECOME PART OF OUR FAMILY! WE WANT YOU!

    Walking into my freshman year at UT I had mixed emotions about beginning my involvement with a research lab. I had been wanting to conduct scientific research ever since high school and now that I was the allotted the opportunity to be a contributing factor I was extremely excited yet terrified. Not having much lab experience, I was afraid that I would feel inferior and completely lost in this new and challenging setting. Picking DIY Diagnostics and being chosen by the stream was the best choice I could have ever made. The lab mentors were integral to my success in the first semester and made me feel at ease when working through the increasingly complex weekly Skill Developments. To this day our lab mentors have consistently provided us with academic support and given us clarity and direction when overwhelmed with schoolwork and assignments.

    One of the reasons I chose DIY Diagnostics was because it offered me the ability to learn not only crucial Biology and Chemistry Lab skills but also the opportunity to venture into new scientific and mathematical fields like Computer Science. Although sometimes I wanted to throw my computer at a wall, learning preliminary coding skills was both a challenging and extremely rewarding experience. Being able to learn a new skill set and working towards improvement continues to be gratifying and keeps me wanting to learn more. Being a part of the DIY Diagnostics community has opened my eyes to the potential of interdisciplinary research ventures. Not only has this stream made me feel more confident in my ability to learn and conduct research but also to interact with the scientific community with less fear and intimidation.

    My current goal in DIY Diagnostics is to create a biosensor that functions as a quick diagnostic for detecting levels of the parasite Cryptosporidium in water sources. Our goal is to create a diagnostic that can be utilized in a variety of situations, for example an avid hiker wondering if it is safe to drink water from a nearby stream or a traveler going abroad looking to determine if it is safe to swim in a natural body of water. This diagnostic would function for both consumption and recreational usage. My interest in water testing came from my experiences travelling abroad as well as my involvement with DIY Diagnostics. Last semester my fellow cohort members and I conducted extensive studies on a variety of bacterial counts found in the different locations of Waller Creek, which happens to run through the campus of UT Austin.

    It was but only a week ago when I experienced another one of many “AHA” moments in the DIY Diagnostics stream as I caught myself in a moment of concern regarding my current research project. As I was doing preliminary research for my project and realizing the extremely complex characteristics of Cryptosporidium, I heard Tim’s voice from his office say “Remember we’re only trying to diagnose! We aren’t trying to cure the disease.” Often times there is a great pressure put on our generation to solve a large part of the world’s problems spanning from complex environmental issues to maladies galore. Tim’s words helped ease my worries, reminding me that the purpose of our lab is to produce reliable diagnostics for current world issues as the first step in identifying their presence and the dangers they pose to humans. The first step to recovery and a solution to such issues is a reliable diagnostic and I am so incredibly proud and excited about where the efforts of our lab cohort will take us this year.

  • Developing a Diagnostic for Alzheimer’s

    The DIY Diagnostics stream is a conglomeration of hands on science, chemistry, computer science, and engineering. So basically, any project that came to mind could’ve been made possible. I am most excited about the electronic projects because they use science concepts as backgrounds for their projects, but they’re using more computer science and engineering to develop it. They will essentially be the coolest diagnostics. This semester, I am embarking on a research journey to develop a diagnostic that would overcome the adversity of Alzheimer’s Disease. By researching the effects and its causes I will be using a biomarker (a measurable substance in an organism whose presence is indicative of some phenomenon such as disease, infection, or environmental exposure) and compare it to negative (no response is expected) and positive controls (receives a treatment with a known response) to compare it to the sample. The design will utilize a lateral flow assay designed by our group. Being in a group and with like-minded peers has helped me grow as a person and a student. By combining our ideas, we are enhancing our projects to an unfathomable extent. For example, when we were in the process of designing mobile apps, the skills each one of shared with each other helped us excel in the project overall. That was a time I realized that I should treat Java and HTML as language (even though it is) and learn each command and what it does so I can work on programs more efficiently. Apart from that, collecting samples for Waller Creek was fun and we had an adventurous time going out and sampling. Overall, I have learned that research can be tedious, but it is definitely fun especially when we start collecting data and seeing results. From being in DIY I learned that making a diagnostic for anything is possible if you are passionate about it and if I need anything Dr. Riedel will help me to the best of his ability.

  • Why DIY Diagnostics is AMAZING

    Making the change from a high school of 800 students to a university of 40,000 undergraduates was one of most difficult transitions of my life so far. At first, I was not only daunted of the classes I have to take for my major, Biochemistry, but also by Freshmen Research Initiative. I was an only a freshmen and all I’ve ever known is that either graduate students do research to earn PhDs or scientists do research for their career. I didn’t realize how wrong I was.

    DIY Diagnostics was my first choice for my lab. I was so excited when I heard about it, especially since I am Pre-Medical student and diagnostic inventions go hand in hand with medical practices. When I first begun the lab, I was able to sample Waller Creek (as shown below). At first, I wasn’t even remotely excited about it. I’ve never been a fan of water, especially mosquito infested runoff water at the bottom of a large university. Then I went to sample the creek with a fellow research person because we were encouraged to never work alone on a project; it was amazing. Finding the points at which we were supposed to sample the river were like mini science scavenger hunts. Subsequently actually scaling down those rocky hills and maneuvering around the overgrown foliage was an feat, and I am still proud of myself. When we got back into the lab, we were slightly winded from the trek and took a small break after placing our samples in the lab. What made the experience even more rewarding were the results of our data; we found a major pipeline leading to pollution within the river and the pollution was significant enough that our lab was able to contact Environmental Health and Safety.

    So clearly, DIY Diagnostics is making strides within the medical community, but also being able to improve the environment is just icing on the cake. I have also learned skills that I didn’t expect to have knowledge about, such as learning a computer science language in order to code an app through github. I was also able to stay over the summer in the lab for 20 hours a week in order to work on a paper based microfluidic device in order to detect C-Reactive Protein with a team of stellar researchers. From just my 1 year in FRI, I can conclude that DIY Diagnostics has been one of the best opportunities I have had the privilege of participating in because of the research I have done and because of the people I have met.

  • New Experience, Collaboration, and Impact on Diagnostics

    As a pre-medical student, when choosing a Freshman Research Initiative stream, I was looking for a new experience where I could pursue personal growth but also partake in research related to medicine. After reading extensively about the streams available through the program, I decided on DIY Diagnostics because it seemed like a natural fit. As I was relatively new to coding, I was looking forward to seeing its application to the diagnostic-related goals of the stream. Throughout my first semester in the lab, I was able to learn about wet-lab techniques along with coding. On one of the assignments, we had the chance to create mobile applications using JavaScript. After I completed this assignment, it was exciting to see the unique finished product. The great part of these coding assignments was that with the resources provided, you do not need to have any coding background to be successful. This process was very enlightening and the environment of the DIY Diagnostics lab was conducive to learning. Furthermore, the undergraduate mentors were excellent resources to approach for insight and guidance.

    I also had the opportunity to be part of the Undergraduate Research Fellowship through DIY Diagnostics. The summer fellowship provided a platform to pursue my passion for research without any other commitments. I joined The Keystroke Analysis for Identifying Parkinson’s Disease in Typing Patterns research study which focuses on creating a new method that aids in diagnosis and monitoring of Parkinson’s disease patients. I had the opportunity to combine human interaction with research. I visited participants who consented to be part of the study at various sites to collect their typing data alongside other students. Each participant is part of a longitudinal study so they would complete one test each month for six months. After data collection, I collaborated with peers that were part of the project on completing data analyses on RStudio and Microsoft Excel. Additionally, I was glad that I was able to pursue a project that aimed to create a positive change in patient care. The experience of data analysis will be a valuable resource I will carry into my future research. Through our group meetings, I received further insight into how researchers can find solutions for obstacles that they face. Furthermore, each day the students in the fellowship met to discuss their progress which I found very interesting. Overall, the fellowship promoted collaboration and team-work.

    I am excited to continue my role in the study in my second semester! My goal for this semester is to collect more typing data from individuals affected by Parkinson’s and to collect typing data from individuals without Parkinson’s for a control group. In this way, we can conclude more detailed findings backed by data. In conclusion, the DIY Diagnostics lab is an excellent fit for someone looking to try a new experience, collaborate with others, and pursue research that has the potential to create a change in medical diagnostics!

  • Another Home

    Another Home

     

    Through the DIY Stream, I met Emily. Emily has since then become a study buddy and life-long friend. DIY Diagnostics has given me so much more than a lab credit.

     

     

    My freshmen year at UT was a rough adjustment to college life. I had originally come from a high school where my graduating class was 43 students. Entering UT, especially the College of Natural Sciences, I felt like a small fish in a giant ocean of college students. When I visited the different research labs before deciding on a stream, I chose DIY as my first choice to visit. Upon entering the open house, the first words Dr. Tim Riedel said to us was, “I hope this lab is a home to you. Yes, you’ll be doing research… but I hope this lab will be another home for you to come to.” I instantly fell in love with the thought of a home-away from home on campus. This FRI Stream gave me the opportunity to conduct research that many others wouldn’t be able to till grad school AND I was able to have a community on campus.

    These two photos are pictures of the techniques to plate E. Coli collected from Waller Creek. This was the first time that research I conducted actually went to a project that is proposed to fix a problem in real-life!

    Now the FRI, it’s pretty unique in itself. When I first applied for the Freshmen Research Initiative, I had no idea what this organization actually was. Long story short, the FRI is the ability to conduct actual research as an undergraduate while getting lab credit for the research I am conducting. The DIY Diagnostics stream is exactly what you think, “Do-It-Yourself Diagnostics”! My mentors described our research with the example of a pregnancy test. You are “diagnosing” yourself with a tool created with research! The first semester in DIY Diagnostics or the FRI is mostly a semester that allows students to learn researching techniques and develop a taste for research. Coming from a small school, this semester was crucial for me to learn information about lab techniques, rules, and knowledge. Your second semester (the one I am currently in) is when the fun begins!

    The second semester of participating in the Freshmen Research Initiative- DIY Diagnostics Stream is where you conduct your own research to ultimately create a DIY Diagnostic tool! Personally, I had a tough time deciding which diagnostic idea I wanted to join. I thought the DIY Zika test was super cool… but so was the Parkinson’s keystroke project, UV Wearable, and many others! I decided that the Parkinson’s keystroke project was one that I felt I could make a difference in. I am super excited for what this semester holds for the Parkinson’s Keystroke Research!

    Here I am collecting water out of Waller Creek that was used to get the samples pictured above.

    Joining the DIY Diagnostics research team, I found a community and a home. What is super neat about joining an FRI stream, is that all the members in your stream are most likely taking the same or similar classes as you are. By meeting my fellow researchers, I met study buddies and friends. The FRI helped me succeed not only in research, but in my classes. Before joining DIY Diagnostics, I wasn’t sure if I would enjoy research or conducting experiments in a lab. But once you contribute to a research project that ACTUALLY contributes to solving a real-life problem, it excites you in a way you have never felt before! So I leave you with this advice… join the FRI, join DIY Diagnostics, find your lab coat and find your home.

  • My DIY Experience

    If you are looking for a stream that will help you gain knowledge and grow your independence, DIY Diagnostics is the stream for you! Although being in a lab and doing research can be intimidating, everyone that is a part of the DIY Diagnostics team is very helpful in giving you guidance as you go along with the FRI program.

    I personally, had never been in a real lab setting before. I did labs in middle and high school but the teacher would always demonstrate the experiment first and the labs we did were also very simple and part of the curriculum required for the class. I am from McAllen, Texas, so we had very basic labs, maybe six times a year, and that was all I was ever exposed to. Going in with basically no lab experience was extremely intimidating to me because I did not know how to do a lot of the tasks we had to do on the assignments. I was excited, however, to learn lab terminology and feel sure in what I was doing.

    I picked this stream because of the exciting research that had been done in the past and also because I felt like we had the most freedom in doing research. Along with actively doing lab assignments, we learn the basics of coding which was very interesting to me. Even though we only learned the basics of coding it is still useful information that you can potentially use in the future, who knows maybe you end up changing your major to computer science! Although it was difficult, I felt like I was solving a puzzle, when something on your app wouldn’t work you would have to go back and see what little mistake might have been made. The entire trial and error process was completely worth it when you finally got your code to run successfully.

    Being a part of the research community allowed me to be more independent and lose a fear of asking questions. When you are in lab you are working on the assignments independently so you need to be sure of what you are doing and just follow the steps. I was so used to being told what to do, step by step with demonstration, so working on lab assignments on my own helped me understand the process of the procedures better. I also became more comfortable with asking questions and getting help.

    My favorite lab assignment which I found very fun was one where we used the 3D printer. In the first step of that assignment we were allowed to print out anything of our choice, in order to familiarize ourselves with the process of finding the measurements and how the printer worked. I decided I would make a longhorn keychain and add it to my set of keys, and it turned out just how I wanted it to.

    Joining the DIY Diagnostics team will help you grow immensely as an individual and allow you to get a feel of how it is to be a part of the research community. I decided to continue with the stream and am now moving onto doing my own research! This is a great way of entering the research world regardless of whether you will like it or not, you will never know unless you try. The idea of making diagnostic materials available for individuals on the daily is a true representation of “What starts here changes the world”

  • A Family of Researchers

    I chose DIY Diagnostics because I fell in love with how comfortable it felt. DIY is honestly just a family of researchers helping each other out. I also was passionate about what research we conducted—we were relevant to the real world and in changing lives on a day to day basis. This concept was really important to me because I am a public health major and wanted research that dealt with populations and diagnostic practices. The main idea of DIY is to make lives easier for both the patients and medical professionals. I absolutely loved the relevance and day-to-day application of our lab’s research and projects. I particularly was entranced by the idea of having a ongoing human subject research pertaining to patients that have been diagnosed Parkinson’s Disease and analyzing their keystroke patterns. Currently, for my independent project this semester I am learning to use LAMP (a DNA amplification method similar to PCR but is more accurate, easier and newer) as a diagnostic to detect Rocky Mountain Spotted Fever, a deadly and usually asymptomatic disease. I am collaborating with 2 other researchers (one of them guiding/mentoring us through the process). Last semester I learned the importance of collaborating with others and their different skill sets. If someone told me a year ago about the skills I have learned and continue to learn through the Freshmen Research Initiative I would’ve laughed because I didn’t think I had what it took to be an undergrad researcher in an actual college research lab. Some of these skills include coding using different languages, Nanophotometer, PCR, 3D printing, Qbit, sampling Waller Creek and so much more that I am still learning to understand. Through FRI I have learned persistence, asking for help, and how to make a mean graph with my data. Not only am I involved in my own research stream I am also a mentor for freshman in Scientific Inquiry Across Disciplines—the UGS class of FRI. It is through mentoring that class of incoming freshmen do I realize just how far I have come. 🙂

  • DIY Makes a Difference

    Hey freshman!

    Deciding on a research stream as a freshman was hard. Only one semester into college, and I was stressed about choosing a topic that both interested me and challenged me. I wanted a stream that was actively trying to make a difference and had a strong real-world application. After going to the DIY Diagnostics open house, I knew it was for me. Firstly, I immediately clicked with the students there and I could tell they were being honest when they said they enjoy their research. I loved the concept of finding practical and affordable ways to assess a person’s symptoms. I was drawn in by the way the pregnancy test revolutionized the field and wanted to do something similar. Though I understood the extremely long path it takes for a diagnostic tool like that to be on the market, I just wanted to be involved and help any way I could on a project that could eventually make a patient’s path easier.

    Getting into the stream was so exciting! Though I felt lost and out of place, I was soon comforted by the mentors and Dr. Riedel who said it was normal and to embrace that feeling. The skill developments through our first semester were challenging, but it brought us all closer because the only way to get through was with teamwork. Through coding assignments and sampling from Waller Creek (seen in the photo below), we all built off of each other’s skills and questions in every assignment. I’ve learned the balance between asking for help from others and being independent in my work. It was always important to think creatively to answer questions, but the team was ultimately our biggest strength.

    Being involved in research as a freshman was very insightful to the way I view science as a field. Though I plan to pursue medicine, this stream helped me develop many skills I’ll be able to apply in the future. I learned about how to read and analyze scientific papers, as well as the basic chemistry and biology skills I can use in any other lab. I encourage you all to browse the stream and find the perfect one for you!!

  • Real Research as a Freshman!

    When I chose to sign up for DIY Diagnostics, the reason that I chose it over other FRI streams was because I was really interested in being able to develop my own diagnostic tool. As a premed student, I was really interested in the applications of diagnostics for my future in the health professions. One thing that really interested me about DIY was the work that past years in the stream had done on Waller Creek–I thought it was really cool that we as students could go out and do work on the creek that would actually help to determine the levels of contamination in the creek.

    Something that really intimidated me about the stream was the coding portion–developing apps throughout the semester. I was nervous going into it because I have exactly 0 prior coding experience, and it’s an intimidating thing to go through for the first time, especially since some of my fellow stream members already had some experience with coding. I definitely learned a lot through all the app assignments, and there was a lot of trial and error before I got each app to do what I wanted it to do, but the whole process was a really great learning experience. Plus, despite the struggle it took to get my apps to work, the sense of accomplishment I felt when I actually did get them to work was honestly unparalleled. I’d advise any prospective DIY students to not let the coding aspect of the stream intimidate you. Despite not having any experience prior to joining the stream, I was able to learn a lot about coding. Though a frustrating process, it really is a great way to learn a new skill.

    Something that I really enjoyed in the DIY stream was the skill development that we did with 3D printing. It was honestly so cool to me that we were able to use 3D printers in the lab–especially because 3D printers are such a great tool to be able to do diagnostic research. I ended up printing a pendant with a trident on it for my little sister–and she was over the moon when I told her about the 3D printing process and how I got to do that in my research lab. The number of  “Oh my gosh, this is SO COOL!”s that I got from her was honestly really encouraging a good reality check for me–the stuff we were doing in lab really was cool

    The stream definitely changed the way I thought about research as a whole. Especially as a freshman, I had definitely fallen victim to the mentality that real research was something that only people with PhD’s or a lot of training were qualified to do. But once we got the results back from our Waller Creek skill development and we found out that we had identified a major source of contamination for the creek, I realized that what we were doing in the stream actually was real research. We, as tiny little freshman with very few skills outside of what we learned in DIY, were able to use those skills and knowledge and produce data through experimentation that actually led to a difference. I think that was honestly one of the coolest moments, for both me as a student in DIY, as well as just a student in general–knowing that something I had done, even without a PhD or significant training, had had an impact, was a surreal moment. My experience in DIY has taught me a lot about research, both in skills and the mentality that I have about it, and I think it’s a great opportunity for anyone looking to get into research.

  • Growth as a Student and as a Person

      As a freshman, I could not wait to get to Austin- I would leave my small East Coast town to make new friends and study at one of the nation’s best universities. Even though I looked forward to new faces and studies, I still felt uneasy about the high school- college transition, and this started before stepping foot on campus. I was worried about the workload and the rigorous coursework I would face the next four years and wondered how I would do it. This is when I decided to sign up for FRI. I wanted to take initiative in my learning and get involved with an organization that would make the big university environment feel smaller.

    Pictures from the Waller Creek experiment from Spring ‘18.

    When FRI started in the spring semester, the DIY lab took every new student under its wing to make sure we would succeed in the lab. In the DIY lab, we learned extensive notebook keeping, which became a habit that helped me organize my notes for my other classes. Another thing I am grateful about the DIY community is that all of the students are more than willing to take a break from their projects to help troubleshoot the work of their classmates. Since I had never worked in a lab before, my lab mates were patient and helpful in teaching me the techniques I would need. This is the strength of our community and I think I can honestly speak for my labmates when I say, we look forward to coming into the lab every week.

    One of the best things about DIY is that we are able to make our own schedule for lab hours. Like adding a class, the extra hours challenges your time management skills, but you quickly get a hang of things. This is especially true during weeks that I had an exam because I was able to skip an hour of lab that week and make it up the following week without falling behind.

    Pictures from the Waller Creek experiment from Spring ‘18.

    Although flexible lab time makes DIY easier, I struggled when it came to our coding projects. In the beginning, I dreaded the coding assignment as soon as I received the notification from Canvas. It took a lot of Codecademy practice and outside readings to get my projects to work properly. I remember sitting in the PCL when the final coding assignment was posted and I thought, “Well, better start before I have to focus on finals.” I knew this project was going to take quite a few hours but when I finished it that same night, I could not believe it. I was shocked that everything came together so smoothly. Coding was never a language I wanted to learn nor did I think I would ever effectively grasp, but there I was. I may not have loved coding websites, but they were definitely worth the time.

    I looked forward to picking up a student’s research project that could truly make an impact in the world. This was important to me in choosing a stream because I wanted to make a difference in the community. In one of the projects we did first semester, we tested the water in Waller Creek and found that the bacteria in it proved to be a health risk and submitted our results to the City of Austin. This truly gave me a sense of accomplishment.

    Whether my confidence was bolstered from the support of the DIY Diagnostics community or the experience I gained as the semester progressed, I am positive that this stream has made me grow both as a student and a person. I joined FRI because I wanted to be apart of a group, learn, and impact the community and DIY has done just that.