Home Institution
Albert-Ludwigs-Universität Freiburg

Host Institution
Whitehead Institute for Biomedical Research, Massachusetts Institute of Technology, Cambridge
Research Mentor: R.A. Weinberg, PhD.

E-Mail: martinvoss76@web.de

Helpful Hints for Future Students
- When in Boston, for a great view, have a drink in the "Top of the Hub", 52nd floor of the Prudential Tower.
- Should you move into an unfurnished apartment, don't buy anything new. Pots, forks, pillows, chainsaws: it's all there for very little money. Just look for moving-sale notes in your building or your institute.
- For cheap wine, go to "Trader Joe's" (go there anyway, it's great for food, too).
- Should you need a used bike, there's a shop on Mass. Avenue in Cambridge (close to Vassar Street). Prices are still high, but you can try to bargain.
- For Halloween Costumes, check out "Boston Costumes" in Chinatown.

Materials and Methods
Three different hairpin-DNA-oligos were designed to serve as templates for siRNA expression. Each construct was cloned into a lenti-viral vector carrying a U6 promotor and a puromycin selection marker. Human BJ-fibroblasts in different stages of senescence were then infected with the lenti-virus by use of a three vector packaging system. Cellular senescence was assessed by morphology and beta-gal-staining. Protein expression was quantified by Western Blotting and Immunofluorescence.