Yes, exactly. We were unable to calculate standard deviations for that data since we only conducted 1 trial. We would like to do that particular experiment again in order to confirm our results.
What is the difference between a treatment with just radiation vs. radiation and propolis. Also, is there a big difference between the oil vs the powder compound? Is one more effective than the other.
So a treatment with just radiation was our negative control, which had an average of about 50% survival. Propolis oil, unfortunately, did not have much less of a survival rate than our negative control, with an average of about 40%. Propolis powder, however, had 0% survival rates at our highest 3 concentrations. So, this is a significant difference between the propolis oil and the propolis powder survival. We didn’t expect this but it suggests that there were other ingredients in the propolis oil that were interfering with the propolis extract. Since the propolis powder was more effective, we suggest any future research on propolis be done using propolis powder dissolved in DMSO instead of any propolis oils because they did not have similar effects.
A “hit” is identified when a certain compound consistently produces a percent survival 2 standard deviations higher or lower than the mean of the negative control (which is ~50%). If the percent survival is below the mean of the negative control by 2 or more SD, then the compound is a potential chemotherapy because it enhances the effects of radiation on our “tumor”. However, if the compound produces a percent survival 2 or more SDs above the mean of the negative control, then this compound is still a “hit” but it is labeled as a radiation protector (because it increases the % survival) which is also valuable information to note about the compound because patients undergoing radiation can be warned to stay away from this compound in order to maximize the effects of radiation.
Our method of quantification did not include the flies that were killed before they were even to form pupae. We quantified the survival of flies by counting the number of empty pupal cases divided by the total number of pupal cases on the walls of the vials. Larvae that did not survive long enough to form pupal cases were in the food in the bottom of the vial which weren’t clearly visible. If we could come up with a method of quantification which includes the flies that were killed before forming pupae, our data would be more accurate.
Is the reason for the error bars not being present on the figure with the powder due to there not being multiple trials with that substance?
Yes, exactly. We were unable to calculate standard deviations for that data since we only conducted 1 trial. We would like to do that particular experiment again in order to confirm our results.
What is the difference between a treatment with just radiation vs. radiation and propolis. Also, is there a big difference between the oil vs the powder compound? Is one more effective than the other.
So a treatment with just radiation was our negative control, which had an average of about 50% survival. Propolis oil, unfortunately, did not have much less of a survival rate than our negative control, with an average of about 40%. Propolis powder, however, had 0% survival rates at our highest 3 concentrations. So, this is a significant difference between the propolis oil and the propolis powder survival. We didn’t expect this but it suggests that there were other ingredients in the propolis oil that were interfering with the propolis extract. Since the propolis powder was more effective, we suggest any future research on propolis be done using propolis powder dissolved in DMSO instead of any propolis oils because they did not have similar effects.
What is a hit?
A “hit” is identified when a certain compound consistently produces a percent survival 2 standard deviations higher or lower than the mean of the negative control (which is ~50%). If the percent survival is below the mean of the negative control by 2 or more SD, then the compound is a potential chemotherapy because it enhances the effects of radiation on our “tumor”. However, if the compound produces a percent survival 2 or more SDs above the mean of the negative control, then this compound is still a “hit” but it is labeled as a radiation protector (because it increases the % survival) which is also valuable information to note about the compound because patients undergoing radiation can be warned to stay away from this compound in order to maximize the effects of radiation.
What were some sources of error in your lab asides from lab technique?
Our method of quantification did not include the flies that were killed before they were even to form pupae. We quantified the survival of flies by counting the number of empty pupal cases divided by the total number of pupal cases on the walls of the vials. Larvae that did not survive long enough to form pupal cases were in the food in the bottom of the vial which weren’t clearly visible. If we could come up with a method of quantification which includes the flies that were killed before forming pupae, our data would be more accurate.