During the Protein to Disease unit, 1 assignment was completed consisting of two parts: the Protein to Disease Project Research and the Protein to Disease Project Presentation. For this assignment, the class was organized into groups and each group was assigned a disease to research and explain—my group was assigned hemophilia. My group consisted of myself, as well as Christian Ongwongsakul and Stellan Sigl.

Protein - a protein is an essential macromolecule for living things to grow and survive. Protein was a component of the Protein to Disease Project included in this unit.

Amino acid - amino acid chains form proteins. There are 20 essential amino acids the human body requires to properly function.

Disease - a disease is a disorder of structure or function in a human that is the result of a DNA error, rather than a physical injury. Disease was a component of the Protein to Disease Project included in this unit.

Hemophilia - a medical condition in which the ability of the blood to clot is severely reduced. Hemophilia was a component of the Protein to Disease Project included in this unit—it was the disease my group researched and presented on.

Factor VIII - a coagulation factor, which a hereditary lack of often leads to hemophilia in an individual. Factor VIII was a component of the Protein to Disease Project included in the research section of this unit.

Factor IX - a protein produced naturally in the body as a coagulation factor. The hereditary lack of this factor often leads to hemophilia B in individuals. Factor IX was a component of the Protein to Disease Project included in the research section of this unit.

Protein Synthesis - protein synthesis is the process by which the body creates specific proteins within the ribosomes of a cell using mRNA copies of DNA. Protein synthesis was a component of the Protein to Disease Project included in this unit.

Transcription - transcription is the first part of protein synthesis, in which a copy of DNA in a cell's nucleus is copied onto a complementary strand of mRNA so it is able to leave the nucleus and enter the ribosomes within the cell's cytoplasm. Transcription was a component of the Protein to Disease Project included in this unit.

Translation - translation is the second part of protein synthesis, in which the mRNA copy of DNA created during transcription leaves the cell's nucleus and enters the ribosomes within the cytoplasm. The mRNA strand is read in groups of three nucleotide bases, called codons, that are matched with complementary anti-codons attached to a specific amino acids. These amino acids are linked in a chain until a "stop" codon tells the ribosome the chain is complete and ready to be folded. Translation was a component of the Protein to Disease Project included in this unit.

Folding - folding is the process by which a completed amino acid chain, or protein, that has left the ribosome folds to assume its functional structure within the cell's cytoplasm. Protein folding was a component of the Protein to Disease Project included in this unit.

Alpha helix - alpha helices are a common motif in the secondary structure of proteins and a right hand-helix conformation in which every backbone N−H group hydrogen bonds to the backbone C=O group of the amino acid located four residues earlier along the protein sequence. Alpha helices were a component of the Protein to Disease Project included in this unit.

Beta sheets - beta sheets are a common motif of the regular protein secondary structure. Beta sheets consist of beta strands connected laterally by at least two or three backbone hydrogen bonds, forming a generally twisted, pleated sheet. Beta sheets were a component of the Protein to Disease Project included in this unit.

DNA - deoxyribonucleic acid, or DNA, is a molecule composed of two polynucleotide chains that form a double helix structure, carrying genetic instructions for proteins that facilitate the development, functioning, growth and reproduction of humans. DNA was a component of the Protein to Disease Project included in this unit.

mRNA - messenger ribonucleic acid, or mRNA, is a complementary copy of a DNA strand made by RNA polymerase to be able to leave the nucleus of the cell to enter the ribosome within the cytoplasm to produce proteins. mRNA was a component of the Protein to Disease Project included in this unit.

RNA polymerase - RNA polymerase is a protein that reads DNA strands and produces complementary mRNA copies that are able to leave the nucleus of the cell and enter the ribosomes within the cytoplasm. RNA polymerase was a component of the Protein to Disease Project included in this unit.

tRNA - transfer ribonucleic acid, or tRNA is an RNA molecule that works to decode mRNA within a ribosome by matching mRNA codons with complementary anti-codons to form amino acid chains to form proteins. tRNA was a component of the Protein to Disease Project included in this unit.

Codons - codons are groups of three nucleotide bases in mRNA that are read by ribosomes to find matching anti-codons. Codons were a component of the Protein to Disease Project included in this unit.

Anti-codons - anti-codons are groups of three nucleotide bases that are complementary to the codons they are matched with by ribosomes. Anti-codons are attached to specific amino acids that are connected to form chains, which become proteins. Anti-codons were a component of the Protein to Disease Project included in this unit.

Adenine - adenine is a nucleotide base found in DNA and mRNA strands and is matched with either thymine or uracil. Adenine was a component of the Protein to Disease Project included in this unit.

Thymine - thymine is a nucleotide base found in DNA strands and is matched with adenine. Thymine was a component of the Protein to Disease Project included in this unit.

Uracil - uracil is a nucleotide base found in mRNA strands and is matched with adenine. Uracil was a component of the Protein to Disease Project included in this unit.

Guanine - guanine is a nucleotide base found in DNA and mRNA strands and is matched with cytosine. Guanine was a component of the Protein to Disease Project included in this unit.

Cytosine - cytosine is a nucleotide base found in DNA and mRNA strands and is matched with guanine. Cytosine was a component of the Protein to Disease Project included in this unit.

During this unit, my group and I did a competent job researching our disease, but could have done a better job formatting and editing our presentation to make it more visually aesthetic and give it a better flow.

Some of this research was difficult to conduct as there were little to no relevant search results, but I improved my perseverance skills by reading through several medical articles to find the necessary information for the research portion of this project. This unit also piqued my interest in the genetic milieu and made think about disease in a new way. This granted me the ability to better question things in everyday life that would otherwise not get a second thought.

I could have done a better job formatting the final presentation, as well as reviewing the work of my group to check for spelling errors or non-homologous themes. Since this project, I have been making sure to put effort into my formatting as well to make my presentations more aesthetic and enticing. I will make sure to carefully go over final versions of assignments to catch and fix any spelling or formatting errors made by myself or my group mates.

During this project, I did a good job collaborating with my group members by adequately completing my part of the research and presentation. I also did a competent job being a conscientious learner during this assignment by persevering through irrelevant search results and carefully reading through copious medical articles to find the relevant information for the research portion of the project. I demonstrated poor communication skills however by failing to make sure all of my group members had double-checked their sections as well, as there were some formatting inconsistencies and spelling errors in the final presentation. The reason my group did not have sufficient chance to double-check all of our work was because we had limited time and had to put the finishing touches on the presentation in a timely manner. In the future we will all have to work to use class time more efficiently. I could have also shown better character during this assignment as I am usually a leader in group work, but did a poor job helping to manage my group members. I will try my best to improve upon this in the future.