Imagine learning how to navigate a virtual lab to splice a gene and extract DNA, then putting these newly acquired skills to real life use in a high school classroom equipped with top-notch lab equipment.

Thanks to the UC Davis Partnership for Plant Genomics program and Biotechnology Kit Loan Program, high school students throughout the nation are able to use game-based software to acquire biotechnology skills. Students in the greater Sacramento area are able to put these skills to use with equipment on loan from UC Davis.

"The Loan Program enables schools to offer temporary laboratory curricula [even if they] cannot afford it," said David Gilchrist, UC Davis plant pathology professor and director of partnership for plant genomics education. "Equipment can run between $18,000 to $20,000."  Read More...