Ever wanted to watch genes "talking" in real-time?

The Challenge: Scientists can see proteins glowing in living cells, but mRNA (the messenger between genes and proteins) has been invisible in live plants—until now! We can only see mRNA in dead, fixed cells, missing all the action.

Your Breakthrough Mission: Adapt cutting-edge animal cell technology to create the one of the first live plant mRNA imaging system. You'll be pioneering a method that could revolutionize how we study gene expression!

What You'll Achieve:

CRISPR engineering: Use dCas13b to tag specific mRNAs with fluorescent markers

Live cell imaging: Watch mRNA move and change in real-time using confocal microscopy

High-throughput analysis: Develop flow cytometry methods to measure thousands of cells

Method development: Be the first to establish this technique in plants

The Impact: Your work will enable scientists to watch how genes respond to stress, disease, or environmental changes as it happens—opening entirely new research possibilities.

Perfect for students interested in: CRISPR technology, microscopy, RNA biology.