Molecular Biology is an advanced biology course at SPS. Students study the central dogma of biology in depth and then apply their understanding to more relevant topics like cancer biology, gene editing (CRISPR), infectious disease, and more. The class prioritizes hands-on experience as students learn about and complete a variety of advanced laboratory techniques, from growing human cancer cells to inducing evolution in a bacterial population.
Students in Molecular Biology study primary scientific literature to understand cutting-edge scientific discoveries and scientists who are paving the way for a better life through science. The portrait of one such scientist hangs on the walls of St. Paul’s School and changed the world with his discovery. Have you ever walked on the third floor past the math and science offices and wondered what that large sign on the wall was? If you have ever questioned what this plaque was, have you ever curiously stopped to read it? If you have, you would know all about St. Paul’s only Nobel Laureate, Dr. John Enders, Form of 1915, and will have seen the Nobel Prize he bequeathed to St. Paul’s School. On May 17th, the Molecular Biology class presented a Chapel talk on Enders and his scientific contributions.
The Memorial Hall Chapel talk was fascinating, as Molecular Biology students discussed Dr. John Enders’s 1954 Nobel Prize in Physiology and Medicine. They shared about his discovery “of the ability of poliomyelitis virus to grow in cultures of various types of tissues.” Sarah Boylan, Molecular Biology teacher and head of the ASEP program, mentions, “St. Paul’s may be one of the only high schools in the United States to have a Nobel Prize on display. And not only do we have the prize, but it was won by Dr. John Enders, who was the first to grow poliovirus in the lab, enabling the creation of the Salk vaccine which essentially eradicated polio.”
The talk educated students not only on Enders’s discovery but also on how the skills students learn at SPS will equip them with the knowledge and ability to impact others directly. Ellie Ward ‘24, a student in Boylan’s class, says, “I think it’s super impactful for everyone in the class to get to see the impact of the kinds of things we have spent so much time learning about, especially since it’s so closely related to SPS.”
If you haven’t, you should see the Nobel Prize in Lindsay but also reflect on how you impact others during your time at SPS. “While not everyone will cure a debilitating infectious disease, there are many ways that our graduates can improve the lives of others,” shares Boylan.