On this week's episode of The Sci-Files, your hosts Mari and Dimitri interview Veona Cutinho. Veona works in the Cellular Reprogramming Laboratory at MSU led by Dr. Jose Cibelli. She works with zebrafish embryos and manipulates them so they can be ideal donors for cloning. These tiny embryos are perfect for studying cloning because their development is quick, easy to see, and happens outside the body! While cloning was once a big deal, it's kind of old-fashioned now because it's tough to get it just right. Veona and team at the Cellular Reprogramming Lab  are trying to figure out what the problem is. She's focusing on a troublemaker called H3K9me3, a protein that makes cloning less efficient. By understanding and dealing with this protein, Veona hopes to make cloning much smoother and better. It's like upgrading an old invention to work faster and smarter!

If you’re interested in discussing your MSU research on the radio or nominating a student, please email Mari and Dimitri at thescifileswdbm@gmail.com.  Check The Sci-Files out on Twitter, Facebook, Instagram, and YouTube!