So it isn't always fun and games here in Finland, I actually spend most of my time as a research assistant in the department of medicinal chemistry at a pharmaceutical company here. Honestly though, it's pretty fun working there... and laid-back too. Maybe it's a European thing or maybe it's an R&D company and they understand that things take time, especially when you're trying to make something that hasn't been made before (or has been made in some other company but, of course, that information is never shared).
But yeah, I help out by carrying out the synthesis of these targets so I spend almost everyday suited up in the laboratory. I guess the most exciting part of the job is wondering if the reaction will work and then looking at the results. The actual syntheses of targets are usually fairly similar, but of course problems will always arise and you need to rethink your reaction. In the words of one of the researchers, Shit happens and then you die! Words of wisdom, am I right?
But yes, day to day work involves reading up on reactions, finding glassware that fit together, doing reaction and following it up with LC-MS or TLC plates, then work-up and extraction when the reaction is done. If I'm lucky, the NMR is clean and product doesn't need to be purified but that is not usually the case. So that is the usual routine; it can get a but repetitive but it helps me get my technique right and fine-tune things. The part I hate the most is setting up and finding glassware that fit together, finding the right part can take a good ten minutes sometimes (or I just suck it!).
Other than the usual, my days at work are also punctuated by pretty interesting meetings. There are the synthetic meetings that I get to attend where everyone gets an update on what everyone else is doing. There are some people who like to keep it brief while there are others who tell you the entire story. The project meetings involve more people and the pharmacologists, modellers, and project leaders come to talk about the in vitro and in vivo results of our molecules and the next steps. I can't really say much about this, but it's all really, really cool stuff. And it's a great feeling to be able to apply the principles I've learned in school to the results put before me.
Project meetings are a sort of tug-o-war between the medicinal chemists and the pharmacologists because the latter have their ideas, demands, and targets they want to test out but it takes time and energy to synthesize something. At the last meeting, I could actually see the chemists' faces darken when the modeller talked about his plans for a new target molecule. It's not like we don't want to make a good drug, but they don't seem to understand the hurdles and challenges. Well, this seems to contradict the laid-back feeling I mentioned earlier... maybe it's cause I don't have to deal with the people asking for the molecules. Yeah, that's probably it.
Then there are meetings outside of your project group that are meant to be interesting and fun. The other day, the researchers gathered to listen to what others did and learned at symposiums. There is also this recurring meeting called Scientific Mornings where a researcher would present a paper and their opinions on it. I really like to go so I can listen in on the discussion and insight (and these meetings are almost always in English :D).
And that is what I do with most of my time in Finland. Working here is very light-hearted and I like how my supervisors are all so amiable and easy to talk to. There is no pressure or wall between us so I actually don't feel awkward asking them questions. I really feel like I am learning a lot and I hope they enjoy my company as much as I enjoy theirs.
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