Tuesday, March 4, 2008

Dilemma for Requests

When I was in Taiwan, I always thought things are different when you are in a big famous lab asking reagents from others. People would reply you rapidly and generously send you antibodies, plasmids, or cell lines you want.

But, now I am in a big famous lab (as least I think so .. :) ), and things seems to be not any better. Recently I wrote emails to 4 labs asking their GFP constructs of microtubule plus end proteins, to reveal the dark region in the midzone where antibodies cannot penetrate. None of these labs replys.

Initially I was thinking probably there was something wrong in my writing or wording. So I asked Aaron. Aaron said it happens all the time, especially to our lab. Sometime people are busy thus ignored the requests. But most of the time, people in the similar field are just not willing to share their reagents to a lab in top institutes, worry about being out-competited for potential conflicts.

Usually we can easily got reagents from friends, which we have plenty in our fields. But once outside the circle, things become difficult, probabaly more difficult than others, unfortunately.

Seems eventually I have to clone it by myself... sigh...

1 comment:

Red said...

Finally I got some kinesin constructs from someone in another field.

Thanks God microtubules and kinesins also play important roles in the neuroscience.