Image: Bigstock

Due to differences in individual genetic makeup, prescription medications may work differently for different people. Online pharmacogenomics databases help document the relationship between genetic mutation and pharmaceuticals.

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Pharmacies often provide counseling, warnings, and helpful information about various potential side effects of specific medications. Patients who take more than one medication are also alerted when a possible problem exists between medications, and they should not be taken together. Patients are also routinely counseled to be sure and finish the prescribed course of medication, even if they start to feel better before they run out of the medicine. This is particularly true with antibiotics. Taking the complete course of an antibiotic helps reduce the risk of new and drug-resistant forms of bacteria developing. But even if you take only one medication, take it completely, and follow all the directions, the prescription drug you take home from the pharmacy may not work for you the way the pharmaceutical company claims it will or the way your doctor expects.

Pharmaceutical companies develop drugs to treat specific conditions. For example, Atorvastatin is used to help lower cholesterol, and Clopidogrel helps prevent blood clots. Based on extensive testing and research, drugs like these are marketed and prescribed for patients. While generalizations can be drawn about the application and effectiveness of a medication, the reality is that there will likely be exceptions. Maybe you've noticed that when you pick up a medication at the pharmacy that there is typically a sheet containing a list of possible side effects and warning signs. Similarly, when you see a commercial on television for a drug, there is always a bunch of really fast talk at the end (often accompanied by some 'fine print' on the screen) that makes clear that things can go wrong. Sometimes it seems that this laundry list of possible complications includes almost every possible symptom one can imagine. The warnings can be frightening, and it's clear that drug companies can't guarantee that their medication will work for you—or won't cause a problem.

So what's going on? Why are there so many precautions and discussions of side effects? If a pill is supposed to cure problem X, Y, or Z, can't you simply swallow it with a cup of water and let the pill do its work?

Medications and Your Genes

How your body responds to a particular drug may depend on your genes. In other words, something in your DNA may make you more or less responsive to a drug and more or less likely to have an adverse or atypical reaction. Your personal genome contains 20,000 to 25,000 genes, and each of those genes contains hundreds to millions of DNA nucleotides. When you do the math—20,000 genes multiplied by x nucleotides—it is not hard to imagine that there is plenty of room for anomaly or mutation within a single person's genome. It might be easy to think that with all those nucleotides at work, one mutation won't really make a difference. But, in fact, a single change in DNA sequence may affect the way a specific prescription drug will work for you.

Making Connections

The study of the relationship between genetics and the biological interactions stimulated by prescription medications is called pharmacogenomics. In the "Drugs & Genetics: Why Do Some People Respond to Drugs Differently than Others?" project, students can learn more about the connections between certain kinds of mutations called single-nucleotide polymorphisms (SNPs), biological signaling pathways, the cellular proteins with which a drug might interact, and the effectiveness of a drug. In this Project Idea from the Medical Biotechnology interest area, students choose a drug of interest and then use an online pharmacogenomics database to investigate the ways in which genetic mutations interfere, specifically, with the function of that drug.

When we think of a sunflower, many of us think of a bright yellow flower with a large, dark center, like the one shown above. In Van Gogh's famous serious of sunflower paintings, there are typical sunflowers intermixed with a few mutant ones. These mutant sunflowers posed a puzzle for plant scientists, but recent plant genetics research has uncovered the gene responsible.

Ask someone who Van Gogh was, and you are likely to hear one of two responses: he cut off his ear, or didn't he paint sunflowers? You might also catch an enlightened Starry Night over the Rhone reference, but, in truth, despite thousands of paintings, Van Gogh may be most well-known for his sunflower paintings, a series for which the most characteristic paintings were created in Arles, France in 1888 and 1889. Each painting in the intensely yellow and orange series expressively captures sunflowers in a vase and depicts flowers at various stages of the growth cycle. Though the number of sunflowers varies in the seven sunflower paintings from Arles, several of the paintings are very similar, only minute differences appearing between them.

A Scientific Conundrum

When I first spotted news stories (like this one from Nature) about the "mystery" of Van Gogh's sunflowers being scientifically resolved, I was surprised that there had been a "need" to solve a mystery about genetic ambiguity in a plant that appears in a painting, particularly in a painting from an expressionist painter. As an artist, not a scientist, I wanted to advocate appreciating and respecting the fact that a painter can, and often does, paint something that approximates reality but diverges from it. A painter may paint both what she sees and what she feels, and the combination of those realities, may yield something that doesn't exactly mirror reality. In other words, Van Gogh's painted sunflower doesn't have to look exactly like the sunflower he had in front of him. But, from the angle of science, if the flower Van Gogh painted looks like the one he had in front of him in 1888, the question of the flower's botanical evolution and history is intriguing because some of Van Gogh's flowers are not "typical" sunflowers.

Floral Symmetry

To make sense of what triggered the research—or the association with Van Gogh—I first had to get a better understanding of "why" the sunflowers in the paintings stand out as such anomalies to plant scientists. If you are of the "a sunflower is a sunflower" persuasion, you might look at one of Van Gogh's sunflower paintings and not see anything out of the ordinary. But a botanist immediately spots an interesting problem—not all of the flowers have the large dark center that is characteristic of a sunflower. Understanding the importance of this visual difference requires taking a step backward to look at the organization and symmetry of flowers in general—and the peculiar symmetry of sunflowers.

When it comes to symmetry, most flowers fall into one of two categories and demonstrate either radial symmetry or bilateral symmetry. In a flower with radial symmetry, you can rotate the flower, and the arrangement of petals continues to appear the same. This pattern is seen in "round"-faced flowers like water lilies and buttercups. Bilateral symmetry, on the other hand, occurs when the two sides of a flower (left and right of an imaginary middle line) mirror each other. An orchid is a classic floral example of bilateral symmetry, but it's easy to visualize this arrangement by thinking of the human face, which is symmetrical along a middle line that divides the nose in half. (Turn the face upside down, and you know the orientation is wrong!)

The interesting thing about a sunflower is that it contains both radial and bilateral symmetry. What appear to be "petals" in the outer ring are actually small flowers, or ray florets, which are bilaterally symmetrical. The dark inner ring, on the other hand, is a cluster of radially symmetrical disk florets. The florets in the center will be fertilized during the life-cycle of the flower, filling the center with seeds. So that's a classical sunflower: an outer ring of small infertile flowers surrounding a large center ring of florets that produce seeds. Now, look again at Van Gogh's sunflowers. Some of them, indeed, sport the familiar dark center. But others do not. The "other" flowers are referred to as double-flowered mutants and contain no center array of disk florets. (The opposite is also possible, mutants which contain only the dark disk florets.)

These mutant sunflowers sparked the research of Mark Chapman and colleagues at the University of Georgia. The team recently published results in PLoS Genetics titled "Genetic Analysis of Floral Symmetry in Van Gogh's Sunflowers Reveals Independent Recruitment of CYCLOIDEA Genes in the Asteraceae." The paper reveals their findings that Van Gogh's mutant flowers show a mis-expression of a CYCLOIDEA-like gene (HaCYC2c) responsible for symmetry in sunflowers. Over-expression of the same gene produces an opposite effect and yields tubular-rayed mutant sunflowers. According to Chapman and team's research, the gene responsible for Van Gogh's sunflowers and other "teddy bear" varieties that lack the dark center, appears to have evolved independently of similar genes in other members of the Asteraceae family (to which the sunflower belongs).

Image from the study published in PLoS Genetics.

"Entire inflorescences (A, C, E) and individual florets (B, D, F) from wildtype (A, B), double-flowered (C, D) and tubular (E, F) sunflower individuals. Florets are arranged left to right from the inner florets to the outer florets. (G) "Sunflowers (Still Life: Vase with Fifteen Sunflowers)" by Vincent van Gogh (1888) with double-flowered heads pointed out with arrows. Panel G was obtained from Steve Dorrington on flickr (available at http://flic.kr/p/8SsPYb) and is distributed under the terms of the Creative Commons Attribution 2.0 Generic (CC BY 2.0) License."

Making Connections

Students curious about the experimentation and research that enabled Chapman and his team to investigate questions about the development of these mutant sunflowers can learn more by delving into both the basics of genetics and the fundamentals of cross-breeding and hybridization in plant biology. As part of their study, the team reportedly cross-bred a number of varieties of sunflowers to track genes that might be responsible for double-flowering.

To begin understanding the ways in which the gene expression occurs, students can explore Mendelian traits in the "Pedigree Analysis: A Family Tree of Traits" Project Idea. This project deals with human characteristics, not plant biology, but the study offers an entry point for students to begin exploring principles of heredity and gene expression. Mendel's early research was on peas. Later research cross-breeding varieties of flowers furthered understanding of dominant and recessive genes.

Art and Science

Whether you approach Van Gogh's paintings as purely an observer or as a scientist or an expert in plant biology, you may never look at the sunflowers the same again. And the next time you drive by a local flower stand and see baskets of sunflowers, chances are you'll notice if there are any mutants in the crowd!

Image: Bigstock.

A trip to the science museum strikes a chord for a science mom contemplating her role as a parent supporting her son as he tackles his first school science project. Interested in exploring bubble science with your students? Blow the Best Bubbles from Scientific American's Bring Science Home section features a family-friendly version of the Bubble-ology Science Buddies Project Idea.

Time and time again, as I watched, kids swished their rings around in the liquid, lifted, and pulled, hoping to drag a ring full of solution from the tray and release an amazing bubble into the air. From where I sat, it was easy to see when someone was pulling too quickly or at the wrong angle. There's definitely a try and try-again mentality needed to figure out what works and what doesn't. As an adult, I felt certain I could have gone over, swirled a ring in the liquid, and pulled up a giant bubble. I probably couldn't have, but I'm sure other parents watching over their children's shoulders felt the same thing. I could see it in their faces. Some of them clearly wanted to step in, to put their own hands on the rings, to guide the process to an exciting conclusion—a beautiful bubble.

But for the student, the hands-on process of interacting with the bubble solution, maneuvering the metal rings, and experimenting with the timing and angle of their movements to find the balance necessary to successfully lift a ring full of the solution from the table and create a bubble is a wonderful learning opportunity. Left to explore, to troubleshoot what was happening when the bubbles popped instantly or when none of the liquid stayed on the rings, gave them the chance to question, to problem solve, to hypothesize (even in their heads), to test (try again), and to learn (whether they realized it or not). Stepping in and creating a wonderful bubble for them might garner some oohs and ahhs, but it wouldn't offer the same moment of experiential learning.

An Important Reminder for Parents

Sitting there and watching the maneuverings at the bubble table was a wonderful diversion. I leaned forward many times, breath held, hoping for a bubble to succeed, and when one of my sons took his place at the table, I watched as he tried several times. I watched, too, as he stopped and watched another kid, a few years older, who was successfully creating some spectacular glycerin displays. My son watched, and then tried again, clearly trying to deduce the difference between that student's technique and his own. From my vantage, it seemed the difference might have something to do with where they were positioned around the table—and possibly from which direction air might have been circulating. I did try and get his attention to suggest he move around the table when another spot opened up, but otherwise, I just watched, enjoyed the momentary pit stop on the bench, and thought about how important it is for parents to support the scientific process without taking over.

Tearing Tape

When we moved to the Tinkering Studio where the kids build marble runs by connecting a variety of odds-and-ends to a peg board, my involvement was needed by one of my sons. He needed me to stand nearby and tear masking tape. That was all. With a marble run, you can test as you add each new element and make adjustments to ensure the marble drops through, finds the next tube, funnel, or railway, and continues to the next step. When something doesn't work out, you move it, alter the angle, change the distance, tighten the tape or holding pegs, or you try another arrangement. He didn't need me to solve what wasn't working. What he needed was a person who could tear tape. The design, the learning, the ultimate vision, and the invention of steps necessary to bring the marble run to fruition were his tasks—and he was up to the challenge.

A Take-Away Lesson

An afternoon at the science museum is always fun for them. Whether they spend time at favorite exhibits or try new ones, they always find plenty to excite and inspire them. They always touch, feel, see, observe, and, most importantly, ask questions. But our afternoon in the giant repurposed airplane hangar where the museum sits was important for me as well. My oldest student is doing his very first school science project this year. For the first time, I am a parent overseeing my own student's science project, most of which needs to be completed at home. On paper, I know the boundaries. I know where to draw the line. I know how the process should go. But when it's your own student, the entire issue of parent involvement takes on new life, and the stumbling blocks seem very clear.

Being the parent supporting and shepherding a student's science project is an interesting position, but it can be a difficult one for parents because it's far too easy to be too involved or too controlling. It's also easy to expect too much, and it can be tempting, sometimes, to try and guide a student's interest during the selection process into an area of parental interest (or expertise). In reality, when a student chooses a project that is about something in which she is interested, and chooses a project that is appropriate for her grade level, skill set, and assignment, she should be able to do most of the project on her own. She may need you to sign the credit card slip for supplies or chauffer her around for materials or a research trip to the library. She may need help with safety steps and with planning. But mostly, her science project should be one she can do independently. Even if a parent itches to be more involved, really, the best thing to do might be to stand back and tear the tape.

A Focus on Hands-on Science

With all of the national attention on science, technology, engineering, and math (STEM) education in recent months, chances are higher than ever before that your K-12 student will be required to do a science project, most of which will be conducted out of the classroom. Given the importance of engaging in hands-on science exploration, this is a wonderful opportunity for students to investigate a scientific question, formulate a hypothesis, run an experiment, and see what happens. As Courtney Corda, Science Buddies Vice President and "Science Mom" recently wrote in an article on parent involvement for PBS Parents, "When your child works on a science project, she is putting the scientific method into action and learning more about how to actively understand the world around her. Her assignment is clear, but as a parent, how involved should you be?"

Science Buddies' Helping at the Right Level at Every Step chart is designed to help parents better understand how to successfully support and encourage a student's science project without stepping over the line and being "too" involved. We've all seen examples of projects (in every academic area) where it is clear that a parent has been heavily involved. Don't be that parent. Know that by letting your student do the work, your student will learn more and will, hopefully, enjoy the process. Don't worry that your student's project, done by your student, might not look as accomplished as another project for which an adult has taken the lead. Science projects shouldn't turn into a competition between parents! Trust that your student's teacher can evaluate your student's project in terms of the assignment and grade-appropriate expectations. The results might not be as perfect as if you'd done the project yourself. That's to be expected. The display board might not look like a professional designer put it together. That's to be expected. The hypothesis might not have been proven true. That happens, and it's absolutely okay! And the project might not be worthy of Nobel attention. Most aren't.

Understand the End Goal

Keep in mind what the K-12 science project is all about. Often the end result of a science project is a small measurable result or confirmation of a single scientific principle. The size of the outcome isn't what's important. Instead, the value comes from seeing the science unfold, putting a question to the test, and examining and interpreting the results. The motor a student makes as a first electronics project may not power a household appliance, but it will teach her about fundamental electronics principles, ones she might use as a launching point for her next experiment or invention.

So, tear the tape if it's needed, help with the procurement of supplies, be available as a sounding board and to help with suggestions when troubleshooting might be required, realize that you may need to assist your student in learning how to pace the stages of the project between the assignment and due dates, and certainly be prepared to join in at any aha moments or when something particularly cool happens in the experiment. But don't take over. It's not your science project. It's your student's. And remember, throughout the process, you get to do something amazing: you get to watch and enjoy seeing your student engage in the scientific process with enthusiasm and confidence. It may be a sideline job, but it's an important one!

(Please see Courtney's full article at PBS Parents: "How to Help Children with Science Projects Without Doing It for Them.")