Former Projects

In 2018-2019, the Danish Environmental Protection Agency (DEPA) conducted a pilot project with the Natural History Museum of Denmark (NHMD), University of Copenhagen (UCPH), aimed at examining whether the results from the existing educational program and research project DNA & Life met the necessary quality standards required for DEPA to utilise the data as part of species monitoring and management. DNA & Life engaged high school classes in monitoring marine species using environmental DNA (eDNA). The studies were carried out by tracing DNA from native and non-native species in water samples collected by students from marine areas across the country. The project not only provided high-quality data benefiting the management of non-native and invasive species but also had significant value for Danish high school students, who gained increased knowledge about non-native species and related issues.

Engaging High School Classes in Non-Native Species Registration

The citizen science project involving high school classes in the registration of non-native species engages high school students in investigating the distribution of selected species in Denmark. The project began in 2020 and is a collaboration between DEPA and NHMD, with the aim of monitoring selected non-native species using environmental DNA while also raising awareness of the issue of non-native and invasive species among high school students in Denmark.

For results and educational materials, please visit our Danish website.

A Brand-New Type of Citizen Science

The ambition of REAL SCIENCE is to break down the barrier between the world of research and the youth - high school students - who potentially may become researchers themselves one day. We invite students right into the heart of research, rather than merely having them reproduce existing knowledge, we make them co-producers of new knowledge in close collaboration with university students and researchers. This way, students gain an inspiring and honest insight into the world of scientific research.

We are convinced that we have yet to see the full potential of the citizen science model. Most citizen science projects consist of separate efforts where the research process is hidden and takes a long time. Usually, citizens neither see nor understand the results of their efforts. With REAL SCIENCE, we challenge this division. We give high school students the opportunity to step into the world of university and become an active part of an ambitious research project while still attending high school.

Read about the museum's other citizen science initiatives here.

REAL SCIENCE was a research project that ran from 2017-2020. The project was a collaboration between DNA & Life, researchers at the Natural History Museum, and researchers at the GLOBE Institute.

Read the research article "Detection of environmental DNA from amphibians in Northern Europe applied in citizen science," where students' work is included in the study of detecting the distribution of Danish amphibians using environmental DNA and citizen science.

For more information about the research and background material, please visit our Danish site.

Environmental DNA, also known as eDNA, can reveal biodiversity in countless different environments, from seawater to ice core samples and the dust under our beds. In the autumn of 2015, DNA & Life conducted investigations into eDNA in tap water. Students from across the country collected and amplified eDNA samples from high school taps.

Professor Rob Dunn, analysing the results, says:

"In the tap water of Denmark, we have a rather remarkable discovery, a discovery initiated by students. Nearly all the major branches of the tree of life (including several dozen bacterial phyla and all the archaea) are present in the Danish tap water, which also happens to be (I think) the most diverse tap water ever studied.

Among the most fun critters you all drank today is this one, the so-called platypus of microbiology. Really wondrous beast. Also common was this crazy micro worm."

We provide all sequence data from the project so you can use it in your teaching and even search for more species yourself. Contact us to receive data and guidance on how to analyse it.

There's Life in Your Tap Water

The project idea was based on studies of tap water from Holland, the USA, and Denmark, where bacteria and various animal species, including protozoa, flatworms, roundworms, annelids, and crustaceans, had been found. With the new molecular biological methods for collecting and analysing environmental DNA (eDNA), we had a unique opportunity, together with high schools from across the country, to get a better overview of the organisms found in tap water and water pipes.

Tap Water in Denmark

In Denmark, we mainly use untreated groundwater for drinking water, and it is only rarely necessary to use chlorine or other water treatment processes. Furthermore, the Danish subsurface, which supplies the water, varies greatly across the country. Denmark is therefore a good place to investigate the composition of bacteria and eukaryotes in drinking water and how it depends on factors such as geographic location, distance to the waterworks, season, water treatment, etc.

Let Your Students Analyse the Results

With the analysis method we used to amplify DNA from tap water, it was not possible for the participating classes to get the results the same day; the PCR products were sent to the USA for sequencing and bioinformatics analysis. Therefore, we share here the complete dataset - not just with the participating classes - but with all interested teachers, classes, and students. This way, we would like to invite students into the researchers' world and give them the opportunity to try their hand at authentic bioinformatic analysis methods.

We regularly open the DNA laboratory to a limited number of students who, as part of their study project, immersion hours, or another assignment, work with qPCR and method optimization and testing of species-specific primer/probe systems.

Contact us and visit our Danish website if you are interested in conducting laboratory work in DNAlab for your project.

Authentic Research

Using qPCR/real-time PCR, students can work theoretically and practically on the design, testing, and optimization of primers/probes. The work is based on current research and development, making students part of it. The aim is to develop species-specific qPCR systems for common, threatened, and invasive aquatic species in Danish nature - both freshwater and marine.

Each student is responsible for a sub-process, and they choose which specific part of the development process they want to focus on. Additionally, we provide a thorough insight into the entire process they contribute to, which is anchored with researchers at the Natural History Museum.

The offer is unique because it shows students not only what we can use the methods to investigate but also how we develop them and what factors are important to consider along the way.

Topics

Laboratory work is a concrete and practical example of using the real-time PCR method with specific primers and probes. It also invites students to apply their fundamental insight into and understanding of a broad range of biotechnological and biological concepts: DNA, mutations, replication, species concepts, evolution, relatedness, enzymes, mitochondria. Practical work with real-time PCR and understanding of the PCR method are fundamental within DNA work and can therefore be included in interdisciplinary tasks on, for example, diseases, medicine, resistance, diagnostics, biodiversity, evolution, nature monitoring, criminal cases, stem cells, cloning, gene manipulation, ancient DNA, or food.

Practicalities

The course consists of a full day in the museum's DNAlab, exclusively for a small group of students. We expect students to take responsibility for choosing, specifying, and planning the investigation they wish to conduct within the project's framework beforehand. Students receive written materials and guidance on this, and we provide equipment, reagents, and close professional support on the project day.

Participation is conditional on the student having previously participated in a regular DNA & Life course with their class. Students who have not done so must expect an extra day in the laboratory, where they go through the course and become familiar with the laboratory and the methods we work with.