We believe that behind every invention and discovery there is always a curious mind working. This section of BioNE, is dedicated to all those young curious minds who have been thinking and working on unexplored possibilities in the horizon of biological sciences. Today’s learning process is no longer confined in books, rather it is based on questioning beyond the existing knowledge and searching for relevant answers. Here, we are inviting all those curious minds to put up questions and bring up a joint platform to share their ideas. Please mail your questions to bione@vetbifg.ac.in

Q. What is gene therapy? Who was the first patient who was given gene therapy? – Gunin Sarma, Cotton College, H.S. 1st year

Answer: Gene therapy is the therapeutic delivery of nucleic acid for treatment of a disease. The first gene therapy trial was conducted on 14 September, 1990 at National Institute of Health, USA. She was patient suffering from ADA Deficiency (Adenosine deaminase deficiency – an autosomal recessive metabolic disorder that causes immunodeficiency which made her prone to infections.

Q. What are magnetotactic bacteria? – Megha Das, B. Borooah College, H.S. 1st year

Answer: Magnetotactic bacteria are a group of bacteria which can align themselves with the magnetic field of the earth. They do so by an organelle – magnetosome which contains magnetic particles. They were discovered by Richard P. Blakemore in 1975.

Q. Why does sour food make us cringe? –Abhijeet Das, Guwahati College, H.S. 1st year

Answer: Cringing of the face when we eat sour food is an involuntary response of our nervous system. It’s a way to tell us that this food might be dangerous. Well, not all sour food is dangerous but most of the rotten food tastes sour due to the formation of acid.