Lab Report Template (Save As: Lab Report

This mixture was strained into the beaker where the detergent was mixed in and the mixture was allowed to sit before being poured into the five test tubes, with (roughly) equal amounts of the mixture in each tube. Four to six drops of contact lens cleaning solution was added to each test tube and gently stirred with a cotton swab. Alcohol was then slowly poured down the side of the test tube, until an amount roughly equal to that of the underlying mixture rested at the top portion of the tube.

Results:

As expected, DNA precipitated in the border region where the water mixture met the alcohol in each test tube. This DNA material appeared as white clumps of strands in the test tubes, and was removed using cotton sticks. Substantial amounts of the DNA formed in each of the test tubes.

Discussion:

The amount of DNA that precipitated in each test tube shows this to be a very efficient and a highly viable method for extracting DNA from almost any source, including the leaf of a hardy yet common weed. Other research has even shown that there is a certain "barcode" gene that most plants possess that easily identifies the plant's species, and thus this simple extraction technique could be used on plants of unknown origin and identified via a database of known plant DNA (Reeves 2008).Applications for plant DNA extraction and identification are virtually limitless. From a variety of forensic uses to promises of expanded anthropological knowledge, the technique described and affirmed by this experiment can be useful in a number of investigations and a myriad of individual uses.

References:

Fuller, R. (2010). "The uses of genetic testing." Accessed 4 August 2010. http://ezinearticles.com/?The-Uses-of-Genetic-DNA-Testing&id=427631

HGP. (2010). "DNA forensics." Human genome project. Accessed 4 August 2010. http://www.ornl.gov/sci/techresources/Human_Genome/elsi/forensics.shtml

Reeves, D. (2008). "Plant DNA 'barcode' identified." Medical news today. Accessed 4 August 2010. http://www.medicalnewstoday.com/articles/96369.php.....