January 9th, 2014

I began my day by measuring out sucrose and citric acid solutions for the rest of the week. I also set out DI water and the waste beaker for the microinjections. Dr. Holstein also taught me to set up the computers for the microinjections. On the computer, I entered the weight of the water bottles and the assigned concentration and solution for each rat. Afterward, I weighed the rats (without cannulae), who are steadily gaining weight. I was able to watch Dr. Pittman perform surgeries on two of the rats. Also, I watched as Alex prepared the Ketamine syringes for sedation. Alex also taught me how to prepare cement for the surgeries. Tomorrow morning, I am going to help Dr. Pittman by preparing cement for the surgeries.