At the dolan dna lab center, an experiment was conducted to investigate alu gene insertion on two alleles at the pv 92 locus on chromosome 16. Students washed their mouth with saline solution to extract their dna sample and gel electrophoresis was used to find their genotype. Six students were reported to have the alu insertion present on both alleles ten were reported to have alu present on one allele and the rest were reported to have no alu present on any alleles.

This experiment was significant because it showed the diversity in the human gene pool. It also showed that majority of the human genome consists of non coding dna called junk genes. It was concluded that alu insertion is most obvious among asian population and less in non asian. The presence of an alu on an allele indicates admixture between asian and non asian population.

Our writers can help get your essay back on track, take a look at our services to learn more about how we can help. Essay writing service essay marking service place an order alu genes are believed to be retrosposons that are restricted to the primate branch of the evolutionary tree. Scientists estimate that one million copies of alu can be found in human, which accounts for 10% of the total genome. Alu are defective short interspersed elements that encode no protein and depend on another intron in the genome called l1 for mobility.

Discovering Books Essay

L1, which is long interspersed elements, is much longer than the short 300bp nucleotides long alu. For rna transcription, alu relies on the retrovirus, reverse transcriptase enzyme of l1, which has the unique skill of sequencing rna bases to make complementary strands by cutting and joining the strand at a designated juncture. During transcription, complex molecules like rna polymerase i binds to the box on the l alu and copies the rna strand needed as a blue print for other alu genes. Using reverse transcription, rt copies the information from the rna template into a dna strand to make a new alu element. A dna polymerase completes the transcription process by forming a new alu element with repeating sequences on opposite sides of the l alu and the r alu elements. The pcr amplifies each dna nucleotide using primers and tag polymerase as reaction agent. A single dna strand is denatured to single dna nucleotides at a temperature close to 100oc.

At a low temperature, primers binds to the complementary sequence on each nucleotide to be copied making it easier for the tag polymerase to locate the targeted spot on the nucleotide. At a slightly higher temperature, tag polymerase binds to the primers and make a copy of the targeted sequence on the nucleotide. The pcr cycle is repeated thirty times to have a good amplification of the dna strands. The dna sample containing the alu elements is placed in gel electrophoresis to separate the copied dna fragments based on their sizes. Although the sample containing the dna fragments is colorless, scientist adds a blue dye to determine the location of fragments as they move through the gel. In the gel, the dna strands are separated by length, stained with purple dye, and illuminated with ultra violet light.

The location of sines of length 300bp on maternal or paternal alleles indicates the presence of an alu gene. The experiment, if performed on donors' alleles from different regions of the world, can explain diversity within a society, and the history of human migration. Scientists concluded that the frequency of finding alu on paternal of maternal alleles is higher for an asian and lower for a non asian. The presence of alu on an allele in a non asian society can indicate identity by descent. The experiment was performed using saline solution, chelex, polypropylene paper cup, micro pipet, micro centrifuge, thermal cycler, and primer. The micro pipet tips were described based on the colors of their ejectors: yellow represent 200 micro liter, light gray represent ultra micro liter, and dark blue represents 10 micro liter. The students washed their mouth with 10ml saline solution to extract cells from the mouth.

The tubes were placed in a centrifuge for the cells to be thoroughly mixed for one minute. After the tubes were removed from the micro centrifuge, the supernatant that accumulated on the surface of the cell pelex were poured into a propylene cup. Then a micro pipette was used to mix the remaining supernatant with the cell pelex by pipetting in and out. The yellow pipette was used to withdraw thirty micro liter of the solution containing the cell pelex suspended in supernatant and put into 100 micro liter of chelex.

In the thermal cycler, the sample was boiled for ten minutes at 99oc to open the cells, cooled, and then spun for 1min in a centrifuge. The initial amount of 30 micro liter of supernatant was drawn into a 1.5ml plastic tube used for the polymerase chain reaction part. Before the polymerase chain reaction, the yellow pipette was used to draw 22.5 micro liter of pv 92 primer into a ready to go pcr bead tube. Then the gray pipette was used to draw 2.5 micro liter of dna sample from the prepared supernatant.

group members: regina and kin yuen me! date of experiment: 30 3 2011 wednesday day 1 what makes you you? what makes derek so arrogant oops! ? the answer is small. Yes, literally, the dna that contains all the code of the human body is so small that need to use a microscope to see it. Dna stands for deoxyribonucleic acid, contains what determine who you are hair color. In this experiment we are going to extract dna from fruit to take a look at this acid that determines the life of trillion of beings around the globe not only humans have dna ndash animals and plants too! 1. After most of the liquid has dripped into the beaker, carefully remove the strainer with the mush and throw it in the trash. Tilt the boiling tube slightly and gently pour in the 10ml of ethanol, letting it slowly pour down the side of the tube. You will see the dna start to collect as a goopy glob, and you can take it out it using a spatula.

Dna Lab Report Text

Discovering Books Essay

Phd Thesis Utk