BOICHEMIST Lisa Mullan is turning complex scientific concepts into children’s stories to give young readers a head start when they come to study the subject at school.

The mum of two, who lives in west Swindon, has come up with the ‘Dinky Amigos’ series to make things like DNA and processes such as mitosis – the splitting of cells to create copies of the original - seem familiar when they cover them through the National Curriculum.

Her books begin with New Friends! for five-year-olds, while her new title That’s Naughty, Seedy Tea! - which describes the intersecting process - is for youngsters aged three and above.

“The content of the books is what’s called ‘subliminal pedagogy’: getting something so entrenched within your mind that you don’t realise it’s there,” laughs Lisa.

“The idea is that children will enjoy the books, and when they leave primary school they can activate the knowledge they’ve picked up through the Dinky Amigo characters.

“As with any other story, children will take on board as much or as little as they want. Because the science is abstracted, it isn’t hard.”

Young people studying GCSE science learn about the genome, the name given to genetic information that’s contained within an organism, and DNA, the molecule that carries this data.

The human genome consists of just over three billion ‘base pairs’, all of which are copies of just four chemicals, and it’s these that have inspired the characters in Lisa’s books.

“These chemicals, or bases, appear in different orders and it’s the order that determines what we look like or how healthy we might be,” she says.

“Understanding the human genome, and the variances within it, is very important. In recent years it has led to developments such as personal medicine – treatments geared towards our particular genetic makeups – and gene therapy.

“Through colour and rhyme, children reading the books become familiar with the shapes and rhythm of the biology. Subconscious familiarity with the subject matter means that children should be more receptive to learning at a later date.”

Lisa has always been keen on science. After gaining a PhD in biochemistry she worked for the Wellcome Trust Genome Campus in Cambridge for several years, close to the place in which Sir John Sulston co-ordinated part of the human genome sequencing project at the beginning of this century.

Before leaving to have her daughters Sarah, 10, and six-year-old Erin, she spent three years as a training officer at the European Bioinformatics Institute.

As well as writing children’s stories, Lisa has been going into schools to help youngsters study the evolution and inheritance areas of their year six syllabus. Her favourite teaching methods include extracting DNA from fruit or using the Dinky Amigos to explain how DNA fingerprinting works.

“Effectively my idea is to bring science into the mainstream in a fun and creative way,” says Lisa.

“I’m trying to help children build their knowledge gradually. Learning about things like the human genome doesn’t have to be difficult.”

• www.dinkyamigos.com