Dna Isolation And Gel Electrophoresis Essay

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The lab this week included deoxyribonucleic acid (DNA) isolation and gel electrophoresis. All living organisms depend on DNA in order to live. In fact, DNA is the “blueprint” passed from parents to their offspring. If the parents have any kind of genetic disorder it is highly possible it is passed on to their children. DNA is a complex structure made up of nucleotides. The reason I say complex is because each nucleotide contains a sugar, phosphate and one of four nitrogen bases. The nitrogen bases include adenine, thymine, guanine and cytosine. The base is what determines the genetic code for each molecule of DNA. I find it amazing you can see DNA that is grouped together with the naked eye.

Methods and Materials During the first experiment, I extracted strawberry DNA from strawberry filtrate. The materials used to complete this procedure included:
Prepared strawberry filtrate
Pipettes
Biohazard Bag
Test tube
Meat tenderizer
Distilled water
Cold 100% isopropyl alcohol
Spooling glass rod
Ice
Container to house ice This experiment used prepared strawberry filtrate so I did not have to break down the strawberries myself. It was …show more content…

This process gives you the ability to identify the length and specific genotype of DNA. Due to DNA having a negative charge it was attracted to the positive current provided by the light which made it migrate. The separation of the short molecules from the long ones was obvious because the short ones move much faster when exposed to the positive charge. I used the proper amount of voltage and allowed the gel to process the correct length of time. I used several different times which allowed me to view the migration at a slower pace. The ethidium bromide dye illustrated the migration pattern of my samples. The experiment was a success because I was able to determine the correct genotype for each

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