13 May 2022
For the second in the Science Department’s series of stimulating STEM Live sessions, we enjoyed a fascinating talk from Dr Bertille Montibus and Mr James Cain, who is currently completing a PhD, from King’s College London’s Department of Medical & Molecular Genetics.
STEM Live is a place where anyone can discover the latest ideas in science, technology, engineering and maths, and on Thursday 12 May Dr Montibus and Mr Cain took us on a journey through the world of epigenetics – the study of how your behaviours and environment can cause changes that affect the way your genes work. Unlike genetic changes, epigenetic changes are reversible and do not change your DNA sequence, but they can change how your body reads a DNA sequence. Our speakers gave us various examples, including the honeybee in which certain phenotypic genes are up- or down-regulated depending on the food it consumes.
The enthusiasm from all the guests who attended, including students from both Woldingham and nearby Oasis Academy, parents and staff was fantastic. The evening finished with our guest speakers giving inspirational personal accounts of their routes into academic research, which was especially enlightening for our students interested in STEM careers.