Areas of Science Biotechnology
Difficulty
Time Required Average (6-10 days)
Material Availability Most items are readily available; any specialty items needed can be ordered from online vendors.
Cost Average ($50 - $100)
Safety If bacteria or cell lines are used as the source of material for purification, SRC approval may be necessary. Adult supervision is recommended.
*Note: For this science project you will need to develop your own experimental procedure. Use the information in the summary tab as a starting place. If you would like to discuss your ideas or need help troubleshooting, use the Ask An Expert forum. Our Experts won't do the work for you, but they will make suggestions and offer guidance if you come to them with specific questions.

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Abstract

In order to study individual biochemical compounds like proteins, DNA, or RNA, biochemists need to know how to purify these components from a complex mixture. This is especially important for biotechnology and pharmaceutical industries, which sell purified biochemicals as reagents or drugs to consumers. Do an experiment to purify DNA, RNA, or protein from a complex mixture (for purifying DNA, see the Science Buddies project Extracting Onion DNA). The source of the material can be a cell line, bacterial culture, plant extract, or yeast culture. Which purification strategies work best for your compound of interest? Can you use enzymes like protease, DNAse, or RNAse to test the product of your purification to see if it worked? Are there ways of altering the protocol to make it work better and increase the yield? For example, you could try changing detergent concentrations, salinity, or pH, or adding enzymes.

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Cite This Page

General citation information is provided here. Be sure to check the formatting, including capitalization, for the method you are using and update your citation, as needed.

MLA Style

Science Buddies Staff. "Purification Strategies." Science Buddies, 20 Nov. 2020, https://www.sciencebuddies.org/science-fair-projects/project-ideas/BioChem_p026/biotechnology-techniques/purification-strategies. Accessed 13 Apr. 2021.

APA Style

Science Buddies Staff. (2020, November 20). Purification Strategies. Retrieved from https://www.sciencebuddies.org/science-fair-projects/project-ideas/BioChem_p026/biotechnology-techniques/purification-strategies


Last edit date: 2020-11-20

Experimental Procedure

For this science project you will need to develop your own experimental procedure. Use the information in the summary tab as a starting place. If you would like to discuss your ideas or need help troubleshooting, use the Ask An Expert forum. Our Experts won't do the work for you, but they will make suggestions and offer guidance if you come to them with specific questions.

If you want a Project Idea with full instructions, please pick one without an asterisk (*) at the end of the title.

Share your story with Science Buddies!

I did this project Yes, I Did This Project! Please log in (or create a free account) to let us know how things went.

Ask an Expert

The Ask an Expert Forum is intended to be a place where students can go to find answers to science questions that they have been unable to find using other resources. If you have specific questions about your science fair project or science fair, our team of volunteer scientists can help. Our Experts won't do the work for you, but they will make suggestions, offer guidance, and help you troubleshoot.

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