The question/problem of this lab was how can DNA be separated from cheek cells in order to study it. We separated the DNA by first gargling Gatorade in our mouths and then spitting in back into the cup. WE mixed the Gatorade with detergent, pineapple juice, and salt. After that we added alcohol because the Gatorade is polar and the alcohol is nonpolar which means that they don't mix and that made the DNA go up and be visable. Our claim was that DNA would be visible after we added the alcohol and that is correct because after we added alcohol to the gatorade mixture the DNA was soon visible. My biggest error in this lab was that I accidentally had too much gatorade mixture and when I added alcohol it was too much so when I tried to dump some out I accidentally got rid of way too much and I had barely any gatorade mixture left. The effect it had on my lab was that I didn't have enough of the mixture that barely any DNA came up for mine. The second error was that some of us got gatorade in our DNA when we were trying to separate it and the Gatorade ruined the DNA.
Two recommendations I would give is first to know exactly what your doing and the next step of the experiment and second don't gargle too much gatorade because we only needed a little.
The purpose of this lab was to show that it is very easy to find DNA and it can be done anywhere. With just a few steps and materials you can separate DNA from your cheek cells. I can relate this lab to the DNA vodcasts we have went over and also the DNA models we made. This lab can be applied to other situations if your trying to find more DNA, now we know how to separate it.
Credit: Derek Fung
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