MEDIA ADVISORY: DNA -- The Key Molecule of Life: Hands-On Workshop for the Public

April 23, 2010

WHAT:
DNA -- The Key Molecule of Life: ‘Hands-On’ Workshop for the Public

WHEN:  
Saturday, April 24, 2010 at 1:30 p.m.

WHERE:  
Columbus Metropolitan Library 1st Floor Homework Help Center
96 S. Grant Ave.  Columbus, OH  43215

WHO/WHY:  
Children and adults will have a hands-on opportunity to learn about DNA and how it is used in Central Ohio. The workshop will include an experiment in which participants will extract DNA from wheat germ and see for themselves what this amazing molecular looks like.  The event will be hosted by genetic counselors and doctors from Nationwide Children’s Hospital and The Ohio State University.

Established by Congress seven years ago, National DNA Day is celebrated in April and commemorates the successful completion of the Human Genome Project in 2003 as well as the discovery of DNA's double helix by Watson and Crick in 1953. National DNA Day honors historical achievements and provides opportunities for the public to learn how the exciting field of genome research will soon touch all of our lives.

Hosts: 
Robert E. Pyatt, Ph.D., Cytogenetic & Molecular Genetic Laboratories, Nationwide Children’s Hospital & Department of Pathology, The Ohio State University; Devon Lamb Thrush, M.S. CGC, Cytogenetic & Molecular Genetic Laboratories, Nationwide Children’s Hospital; Karen Siklosi M.S., Genetic Counselor, Division of Molecular and Human Genetics, Nationwide Children’s Hospital; and Pamela Snyder, Lead Technologist, Molecular Pathology Laboratory, Department of Pathology, The Ohio State University.

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CONTACTS:
Kim Snell, Marketing Communications Coordinator, Columbus Metropolitan Library, (614) 849-1046 or (614) 769-8505.

DAY OF EVENT LIBRARY CONTACT PHONE (614) 645-2275.
David Crawford, Media Relations, Ohio State University Medical Center, 614-293-3737
Pam Barber, Mary Ellen Peacock, Erin Pope, Media Relations, Nationwide Children’s Hospital, (614) 355-0495.

CONTACT AT THE EVENT:
Dr. Robert Pyatt

About Nationwide Children's Hospital

Named to the Top 10 Honor Roll on U.S. News & World Report’s 2023-24 list of “Best Children’s Hospitals,” Nationwide Children’s Hospital is one of America’s largest not-for-profit free-standing pediatric health care systems providing unique expertise in pediatric population health, behavioral health, genomics and health equity as the next frontiers in pediatric medicine, leading to best outcomes for the health of the whole child. Integrated clinical and research programs, as well as prioritizing quality and safety, are part of what allows Nationwide Children’s to advance its unique model of care. Nationwide Children’s has a staff of more than 14,000 that provides state-of-the-art wellness, preventive and rehabilitative care and diagnostic treatment during more than 1.7 million patient visits annually. As home to the Department of Pediatrics of The Ohio State University College of Medicine, Nationwide Children’s physicians train the next generation of pediatricians and pediatric specialists. The Abigail Wexner Research Institute at Nationwide Children’s Hospital is one of the Top 10 National Institutes of Health-funded free-standing pediatric research facilities. More information is available at NationwideChildrens.org.