Biology Projects

Summary of Projects

DNA Extraction #1

Kitchen Lab—DNA Extraction

Instructions

To get started, you will need a source of DNA. The following instructions require you to use split peas as your DNA source.

You will need:

• 125 ml (1/2 cup) dried split peas

• .5 ml (1/8 teaspoon) salt

• 250 ml (1 cup) of ice-cold water

• A blender

• A strainer

• A container (bowl, plastic reusable container, or similar container)

• Liquid detergent (for example dish detergent)

• 3 ml (3/4 teaspoon) pineapple juice *

• Rubbing alcohol (chilled)

• A few toothpicks

• 3 small glasses OR 3 test tubes if you have them

*If you don't have pineapple juice, you can use contact lens cleaning solution or even meat tenderizer. This ingredient acts as an enzyme, which you will learn more about in the next lesson.

Procedure:

1. Combine dried split peas, salt and ice-cold water.

2. Mix in a blender on high speed for 15 seconds.

3. Pour the pea mixture through a strainer into another container.

4. Add about 30 ml (2 tablespoons) of liquid detergent to the mixture. Let it sit for 5 to 10 minutes.

5. Pour the mixture into the glass (or test tube) so that it is one-third full.

6. Then add 1 ml (1/4 tsp) pineapple juice to the glass container and stir gently.

7. Tilt the container and slowly pour chilled rubbing alcohol down the inside wall of the tube so that it forms a layer on top of the mixture. Keep pouring in alcohol until the tube contains about the same amount of alcohol as it does pea mixture.

8. In a few minutes, the DNA will rise into the alcohol layer from the pea mixture layer. You can use a toothpick to pull the DNA out.

Congratulations—you've just extracted the “master set of instructions” for split peas!

If your lab is not working the way you think it should be, check out these FAQs for some helpful hints by clicking here

Reflect on the 'Kitchen Lab' you have just completed by answering the following questions:

1. A student performs this activity, but does not manage to extract DNA from the sample. What are some things that they may have done wrong?

   Solution? click here

   There are many possible sources of error in this experiment. You might have come up with a possible error that is not on this list. Some that you may have thought of include:

   • using water that is not cold enough
   • not letting the final mixture sit for long enough
   • using the wrong strength of rubbing alcohol
   • not blending the original mixture for long enough
   • incorrect ingredient measurement
   • omitting an ingredient, for example salt, from the original mixture

2. What are some changes you could make to the procedure in order to determine more about DNA extraction?

   Solution? click here

   This experiment could be changed in many different ways, and the changes you suggest might affect the outcome of the experiment. Some possible changes include:

   • using different sources of DNA
   • using warm or hot water instead of cold water
   • omitting the salt to see whether DNA would still be extractable
   • blending different samples for different amounts of time
   • adding different enzymes to different samples
   • adding different concentrations of rubbing alcohol
   • letting different samples of the final mixture sit for different amounts of time

DNA Extraction Lab #2-Introducing a Variable

DNA Extraction Lab

You will need to refer to the DNA Extraction lab that is the project listed before this one. The first lab serves as the basis for making comparisons, so you should have completed the activity exactly as described. If you need to make any changes (for example using a DNA source other than split peas), make sure you note these in the Procedure section of your Lab Report. This second time you do the experiment, you will be changing one thing. This is called introducing a variable (a variable is a factor that changes in an experiment).

The variable you choose is up to you. You might try one of the following:

1. using a different DNA source than in your first experiment
2. using a different enzyme (for example if you used meat tenderizer the first time, use pineapple juice the second time)
3. using hot water instead of cold water
4. eliminating the salt.

Make sure you only change one thing in your second experiment. This is so that whatever differences you notice, you can be sure they occurred because of the change you made in your experiment design.

Go to The Scientific Method (Writing a Lab Report—Introduction).

To write your Lab Report, follow the instructions and format . Here are some tips and guidelines to help you:

Observations:

• Briefly describe the appearance of your mixture at each stage (before and after adding each ingredient) and note any differences between the control mixture (original experiment) and the mixture you created according to the variable you are testing. You might choose to display your observations in a chart or table form, or as notes.

• Once you have extracted DNA, make a comparison between the amounts you got from each of your samples. This will probably be qualitative—which sample looks as if it has more? You are not required to weigh each amount.

• Finally, read ahead to the Lab Report Conclusion section below, and note that you are asked to think about how you interpreted your results. For example, if your experiment did not yield any visible DNA, what might have happened?

Questions:

1. Briefly describe all of the effects of the change you made to the original experiment. For example, were you able to extract more DNA? Was there a visible reaction when you added an ingredient that did not occur before?

2. Why do you have to add an enzyme in this experiment? What do you think would happen if you skipped this step?

3. Give two possible sources of error in this activity—what might have affected your success at extracting DNA?

4. Give one way that you think you could improve upon this experiment.

Make a Karyotype

Summary:

A karyotype is an organized profile of a person's chromosomes. In this activity the student will be making a virtual karyotype by matching 22 chromosomes based on size, banding patterns and centromere positions as guides

Activity Timing:

In its most basic form, this virtual activity will take the average student 30 minutes. If the activity is done using the PDF of the chromosomes, the activity will take one hour.

Materials:

'Click here'  for the link for the virtual activity.

'Click here' for the link for the PDF. This version will require scissor, and glue.

Activity submission:

Take a screen shot of your completed karyotype and upload it to project submissions or hand in the hard copy of the karyotype to your teacher.

Research a Genetic Disease

Summary:

A genetic disease is any disease that is caused by an abnormality in an individual's genome, the person's entire genetic makeup. The abnormality can range from minuscule to major -- from a discrete mutation in a single base in the DNA of a single gene to a gross chromosome abnormality involving the addition or subtraction of an entire chromosome or set of chromosomes. Some genetic disorders are inherited from the parents, while other genetic diseases are caused by acquired changes or mutations in a preexisting gene or group of genes. Mutations can occur either randomly or due to some environmental exposure. You met Sam Berns who had the genetic disease Progeria. Other genetic diseases include; Down's Syndrome, Adrenoleukodystrophy (ALD), Hunter Syndrome, Turner Syndrome and there are many more. Select a genetic disease of your choice and report on it.

Project Timing:

This project should take the average student 2-3 hours to complete.

Materials:

• Computer and internet access
• Power Point or a web based presentation tool such as Google Slides or Prezzie.

Criteria

Create an electronic presentation that includes the following information about the genetic disease:

• Signs and Symptoms
• Causes
• Diagnosis
• Treatment
• Prognosis

Project Submission:

Once you have completed your project, upload it to the Biology project drop box.

Create a Children's Storybook

Summary:

Students will create an electronic storybook that teaches children about the Kitasoo Xai'xais people's legend of the Spirit Bear and the genetics of the Spirit Bear.  The storybook will combine text and photographs. This project can be done individually or in a small group. The video below will provide information on the legend and genetics of the Spirit Bear and inspiration for the storybook! Students are encouraged to share the electronic storybook with a child or a group of children. 

Project Timing: 

Timing will vary depending on the length of the storybook and what method the student chooses to create their storybook.

Materials:

• Computer and Internet Access
• Power Point or a web based presentation tool such as Google Slides or Prezzie

Criteria

• Include the First People's name and the scientific name of the Spirit Bear
• Describe the Kitasoo Xai'xais legend of the Spirit Bear
• Describe the genetics of the Spirit Bear
• Include where the bears live, what they eat, how they behave and the importance of their habitat

Project Submission:

Once you have completed your project, upload it to the Biology project drop box.

Making A Mutation

Making a Mutation

Introduction

You might recall that genes are long sections of a DNA molecule, and that they can contain very large numbers of base pairs. Would it really be so bad if just one of these was changed by a mutation?

This guided practice will give you a chance to see how each type of gene mutation—deletion, addition, and substitution—can occur.

Instructions

If you can think of a gene as a sentence, then the four DNA bases would be the letters that make up that sentence. In a moment, you will use these bases to complete an activity; but first, read this comparison between the genetic code and the English language.

Just like in English sentences, letters must be placed in a specific sequence, or they will not make sense. Consider the following model of a gene sequence:

Remember that bases are 'read' in sets of three—these codons compare to the words in the sentence:

Now, answer the following questions using this DNA sequence:

1. a. Separate this DNA sequence into codons (groups of three bases each).

   b. What is the amino acid sequence that would correspond to this DNA sequence? To find the answer, use the chart of codons provided.

   Here is the mRNA base sequence that corresponds to the DNA sequence provided above:

   GGC UAU CGU AAA

   

   Solution? click here

   a. CCG ATA GCA TTT

   b. Glycine, Tyrosine, Arginine, Lysine

2. a. Rewrite the sequence to show how it would look if the first “G” was deleted.

   b. The mRNA sequence that corresponds to this mutated DNA sequence is GGU AUC GUA AA. What sequence of amino acids does this code for?

   Solution? click here

   a. CCA TAG CAT TT

   b. Glycine, Isoleucine, Valine. The remaining two bases cannot code for an amino acid.

3. a. Rewrite the original DNA sequence to show how it would look if another 'G' was added next to the first 'G'.

   b. The mRNA sequence that corresponds to this mutated DNA sequence is GGC CUA UCG UAA A. What sequence of amino acids does this code for?

   Solution? click here

   a. CCG GAT AGC ATT T

   b. glycine, leucine, serine, stop. The last bases cannot code for an amino acid.

4. a. Rewrite the original DNA sequence to show how it would look the first “G” was replaced by “C.”

   b. The mRNA sequence that corresponds to this mutated DNA sequence is GGG UAU CGU AAA. What sequence of amino acids does this code for?

   Solution? click here

   a. CCC ATA GCA TTT

   b. Glycine, tyrosine, arginine, lysine

5. Based on your comparison of the amino acid sequences produced by DNA mutations in questions 2–4, which do you think would be the least harmful mutation to a cell? Why?

   Solution? click here

   Substitution mutations are least likely to be harmful because changing one base would only change one amino acid. In this example, there was no change at all, even though a mutation had occurred.

When you are done, please go to this site - Learn Genetics. When you have completed the activity take a screenshot of your work and email it to me.

An Inventory of My Traits

Summary:

Students take an inventory of their own easily-observable genetic traits. Working in small groups they observe how their trait inventories differ from those of others. Students record their observations in a data table and make a bar graph to show the most common traits in a group. This activity can also be done with a students family members if they are working independent of a group of students.

Activity Timing:

In its most basic form, this activity will take the average student 30 minutes. 

Materials:

'Click here' for the trait inventory worksheets.

Activity submission:

Upload your completed trait inventory to 'project submissions' or hand in the hard copy of the inventory to your teacher.