Unit 6 Reflection

This unit was about biotechnology, its uses, and the ethical questions it raises.  We learned how DNA can be recombined and inserted into a new organism through a plasmid. By inserting a gene into a plasmid and inserting the plasmid into bacteria, the bacteria will treat the new gene as its own and produce whatever protein it codes for. After introducing the plasmid to bacteria, they place the bacteria in food to make them grow and then put them into the antibiotic the plasmid provides resistance too. This ensures that all bacteria without the plasmid will die.

To learn how to analyze DNA and how to measure the lengths of the strands of DNA we did the gel electrophoresis lab. http://nakulbiology.blogspot.com/2017/01/candy-electrophoresis-lab.html We cut out DNA using restriction enzymes and tested their lengths by running them through a gel.

The pGLO lab incorporated all the things we had learned about biotech. We had several different samples of bacteria and treated each with different things. After the lab, as expected, the bacteria with the pGLO gene inserted, the ampicillin resistance, and the arabinose glowed under UV light.  http://nakulbiology.blogspot.com/2017/01/pglo-lab.html


I understood this unit pretty well. It was not very long and the hands on labs helped me in my understanding. While reading the concepts of the labs I was confused, but after doing the lab it made perfect sense to me why everything happened as it did. Seeing the concepts in action really helped me see what was going on. I wonder how biotech will play a role in society in the future. Will altering multi-cellular organisms be common? Will we ever alter human DNA or clone a human?

I think I have done a good job on my New Years resolutions. I finished my chapter notes early so I wasn't stressed or piled up with work. Also, I finished most of my homework assignments early or on time. I could still improve by preparing for tests sooner instead of procrastinating my studying.

pGLO Lab

1.

Plate	Number of Colonies	Color of colonies under room light	Color of colonies under UV  light
-pGLO LB	covered	brownish yellow	whitish blue
-pGLO LB/amp	0	N/A	N/A
+pGLO LB/amp	100~	brownish yellow	whitish blue
+pGLO LB/amp/ara	22	brownish yellow	glowing green

2. The bacteria from the +pGLO LB/amp/ara plate gained two new traits. The transformed bacteria are resistance to ampicillin and the ability to glow under UV light. They did not die in the presence of ampicillin, and glowed under the light.

3. Each transformed bacteria must have multiplied into a colony, so about 100 bacteria were transformed in the +pGLO LB/amp. The bacteria that did not pick up the plasmid would have been killed by the ampicillin. Probably half of the bacteria died in the plate, so probably over 250 bacteria were present in the 100 micro-liters.

4. The purpose of arabinose is to "turn on" the GFP or Green Fluorescent Protein. This causes the bacteria to glow green under UV light. 

5. There are several uses for GFP for biologists. It can be used as a marker when inserting a gene into a cell. If the cell glows, it means the other gene inserted is also being expressed. The protein has also been altered to react to different wavelengths and express several different colors. 

6. Another practical application of genetic engineering is in food production weather it be animals or crops. Genetic engineering can make an animal or plant stronger, bigger, or more resistant to disease. 

Source: https://embryo.asu.edu/pages/green-fluorescent-protein

Candy Electrophoresis Lab

I this lab, we asked the question of can molecules in food dye be separated in gel electrophoresis. We found that the dyes did separate, by observing the different groups of dye after electrophoresis. We learned from our textbook and the vodcasts, that smaller molecules of DNA travel faster and farther in electrophoresis, and larger molecules travel slower. The data is consistent with these scientific principles, because the dyes with the larger molecules did not travel as far as the smaller moleculed dyes.

1. In our experiment the bands were about the same size as the reference dyes. In some cases, our dyes were different colors than the reference dyes so they did not match up. None of the dyes moved towards the negative charge.

2. Of the dyes listed, betanin and citrus red 2 would move like our red dye, but citrus red 2 would move faster because it is a smaller molecule. Also, fast green FCF would move similarly to our green dye because it is similar in size.

3. Dog food manufacturers would put artificial colors in the food to make it more visually appealing and consumers are more likely to buy a food that is colorful and nice looking than a food looking unappealing and bland looking.

5. The factors that control how far the dyes go are time and size of molecule. The longer the electrophoresis is on for, the farther the dyes will travel. Also, the smaller molecules will travel faster, and therefore farther in the allowed time.

6. The force that allows the dyes to move through the gel is electricity. When the current runs though the gel, the molecules are repelled by the negative charge, because they are also negatively charged, and attracted to the positive charge, which propels them through the gel.

7. The gel is the component that separates the molecules by size. If it was a liquid for example, all the molecules would travel at the same speed, but the gel makes it harder for larger molecules to travel, separating out the sizes.

8. DNA molecules with different weights would separate out in different groups. The DNA with the molecular weight of 600 daltons would form a band ahead of the rest. Following would be the 1000, 2000, and 5000 in that order.

New Years Goals

1. This semester I will be more organized in my work.

I often struggle to find things and get things done efficiently because my things are not in one organized place and are often strewn across many places. Having things in one place will make it easier to finish work on time and study. Also, a schedule will allow me to organize my time better.

2. I will finish textbook notes earlier.

I have sometimes done this and sometimes not. By finishing the textbook notes earlier, it will allow me to learn better and be less stressed about completing them. When I procrastinated and put off the notes, I did not learn from them because I was more focused on finishing then obtaining the information.