Human DNA Extraction Lab

Human DNA Extraction Lab

“How can DNA be separated from cheek cells to study it?” That was the question we stated our claim off of, which was homogenization, lysis, and precipitation. We swished gatorade around in our mouths to fill it with cheek cells, and after that we put salt, the enzyme for this, and dish soap. After this, we slowly poured alcohol into the test tube, and the DNA slowly diffused into the alcohol. This data supports our claim because it follows homogenization, lysis, precipitation and it allows us to study the DNA.

Our data agrees with the expected results because our steps, if followed correctly, were supposed to yield some DNA in the alcohol, which is what happened. There could have been errors with exact drop measurements, which could allow for too little DNA or the alcohol might not have separated from the soapy gatorade. There also could have been mistiming on how long we let the gatorade sit for, which might have limited the amount of DNA that came out. We could have solved these problems by using more precise measurements with drops, and by starting the timer exactly when we spit it out.

This lab was done to demonstrate the process used to collect DNA from a sample. From this lab I learned how to collect DNA from a sample, and this can help people in real life because of investigations. Based on my experience from this lab, I will be able to produce real DNA samples in the future, and DNA is so much more interesting to me now.