SBI Take the Ice Bucket Challenge
As the Ice Bucket Challenge for ALS (better known in Ireland as motor neuron disease) is currently taking social media by storm, Systems Biology Ireland decided to get in on the action Friday last the 22nd August. There was a nervous tension to be felt in the lab in the lead up to the challenge. An 11 strong group of team members from centre management, PhD students, Postdocs and Group Leaders stepped up to the plate to be submerged in the icy waters in order to raise much needed funds and awareness for the Irish branch of Project MinE. Project MinE was set up in 2011 by two ALS patients in the Netherlands whose goal was to accelerate the search for a treatment or cure for ALS, with six countries including Ireland now participating in the project.
The Irish branch consists of a collaboration between the Academic Unit of Neurology of Trinity College Dublin, Research Motor Neurone and the Irish Motor Neurone Disease Association. Their aim is to analyse 400 DNA samples of ALS patients and 200 DNA samples of control subjects. As scientists we understand the difficulty in receiving vital funding for research projects so we are delighted that our tiny act of madness on a Friday afternoon and the generosity of our fellow SBI colleagues raised €237.20 enabling Project MinE to sequence 3 chromosomes and take one small step towards reaching their funding goal.
Further details on Project MinE including information on how to donate can be found at www.projectmine.com/country/ireland.
