All living things are made of cells and share the same basic cellular machinery. This simple fact is what underlies the "Biotechnology Revolution," which has given scientists the ability to create new transgenic crops that are resistant to insect pests, plant viruses, or herbicides. They have also been able to amplify tiny amounts of DNA in order to identify disease-causing bacteria or viruses, and even the identity of a criminal suspect. Explore these subjects even further with some of the following topics found in the Project Ideas below:
Do-It-Yourself DNA
All living things have DNA inside their cells. How do scientists extract the DNA from cells in order to study it? In this experiment you can make your own DNA extraction kit from household chemicals and use it to extract DNA from strawberries.
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Liver Stinks!
Sometimes science can be really messy or use pretty disgusting ingredients. That is what it takes to understand how the world works, even if the experiment isn't pretty. Do you like chemical reactions that stink and ooze foamy bubbles? Do you think it sounds fun to make a super gross liver smoothie? Then this is the experiment for you!
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A Magnetic Primer Designer
How do scientists "copy" DNA? They use a process called the Polymerase Chain Reaction, or PCR. The key to making this process work is having a primer that will stick to the piece of DNA you want to copy, called a template. In this experiment you will test how the number of matches and mismatches in a primer will affect its ability to stick, or anneal, to the DNA template during PCR.
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Molecular Scissors
Ever used a pair of molecular scissors? Restriction enzymes are molecular scissors that cut DNA into pieces. Find out which enzymes will cut, and where by making a restriction map. Then you can figure out what will happen if you change the sequence of the DNA. Will the same enzymes still cut the new DNA sequence?
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What Makes a DNA Fingerprint Unique?
Do you like solving mysteries? In this experiment, you can find out how a DNA fingerprint can help you figure out whodunit. The answer might just be in the "sequence" of events!
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How Are Antibodies Used for Blood Typing?
What are antibodies? How are they formed? How can they be used to identify different types of cells? This project is a practical introduction to the immune system.
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Index of Biotechnology Project Ideas |
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