Under the supervision of the Dean of the College of Pharmacy, Professor Dr. Sarmed H. Kathem AlKhateeb, the Continuing Education Unit, in cooperation with the Ibn Sina E-Learning Unit, at the University of Baghdad/College of Pharmacy held an electronic workshop entitled “The Southern Blot Technique”, delivered by Lecturer Dr. Aminah Ali Abid, a faculty member at the Clinical Laboratory Sciences Department.
The workshop aimed to clarify the applications of Southern blot in detecting a specific DNA sequence and estimating its size and abundance.
The workshop included several topics, including explaining the principle of Southern blot technique, which is one of the most important laboratory techniques that is widely used in gene discovery and mapping, studies of evolution and development, diagnosis of cancer, infectious and genetic diseases, as well as in forensic applications. Also, the Southern blot technique helps confirm DNA cloning results, as it can be used to ensure that a specific DNA fragment with a known sequence has been successfully incorporated into the host genome for the creation of genetically modified organisms. Furthermore, the workshop illustrated the steps of the Southern blot technique and the reagents required for preparing its solutions, in addition to explaining how to use this technique in detecting the target DNA in tested samples.
The workshop concluded that the Southern blot technique is crucial in modern research, as it helps researchers identify the pathogenic pathways underlying the development of cancer and genetic diseases.
