Frequently Asked Questions

1. Who are we?

We are post-doctoral researchers/junior principle investigators in academic institutes and pharmaceutical companies.

2.Why is the website unique?

During the past several years, we have accumulated a large number of 'working' protocols from plasmid miniprep to antibody generation, from immunohistochemistry to transgenic mouse generation. Here we consolidate all what we have tested and present in this website. There are several other excellent online protocol websites. However, we believe ours is unique in that we only add the protocols which have been substantially tested. We mean to make this site a place you can trust.

3. Why do we do this?

Most of us just went through painful PhD/post-doc studies. We all appreciate how important it is of a 'working' protocol. We all have the experiences as trapped in particular technical difficulties month by month. We would like to share what we know and hope your experiments work at the first time so you can save more time for other things.

We will update the protocols periodically and publish PDF file for the entire website each year. Feel free to distribute the PDF file when it is available.

4. Is it a commercial website?

No.

5. Can we provide protocols?

Yes. I am sure you have a lot. Please contact us. We will add you into our collaborating team and grant you the permission to add/edit protocols.

6. Can we add comment?

We welcome comments. We also encourange discussion of any scientific/technical problems in our forum.

7. How do I cite this website?

Please cite our website as reference in your scientific publications.


Site News
New feature:
You can add comments on protocols now. Just go to any individual method page and click on the "Add a comment" link.

Highlight of the month
SIRT6 links glucose and lipid metabolism

SIRT1, a histone deacetylase, has drawn considerable attention due to its important roles in metabolic regulation and longevity. SIRT1 is induced by fasting and suppressed by feeding. SIRT1 increases glucose production and beta oxidation in liver to meet energy needs during food deprivation. Another member of SIRT family, SIRT6 follows similar expression patterns as SIRT1. The function of SIRT6 in metabolic regulation remains unknown.

Kim and colleagues found SIRT1 can regulate SIRT6 expression in liver. Specifically, SIRT1 functions together with FOXO3a and stimulates SIRT6 transcription during fasting. The activation of SIRT6 directly suppresses gene expression of metabolic enzymes involved in triglyceride synthesis and glycolysis in liver. Deficiency of SIRT6 causes increases of glucose utilization, reduced beta oxidation and as a result, fatty liver. More importantly, Kim et al found the expression of SIRT6 is decreased in human fatty liver samples which indicates SIRT6 may play critical roles in liver steatosis in clinical settings. This study landed in Cell Metabolism of this month. ... Read more highlights.