Eau That Smell

Content

• DNA Basics: what it is and how it works
• Gene Expression: Transcription, Translation, Operons
• Recombinant DNA: Restriction enzymes, cloning, selection with antibiotic resistance

Skills

• Pipetting
• Measuring cell density with a spectrophotometer
• Interpreting Quantitative and Qualitative Data
• Generating Hypotheses
• Basic microbiology skills: Culturing bacteria, Aseptic technique, Antibiotic resistance, Population growth dynamics

SOME LAB MATERIALS TO HAVE ON HAND

• HARDWARE: Some basic biology laboratory equipment such as glassware, pipets, a water bath or heat block to heat samples, an icebucket or styrofoam cup to cool samples, 4C fridge and ice-cold freezer (ideally to -20C) to store samples, a stir plate to mix samples, and an incubator to grow samples (though room temperature can work too). Some additional experiments might need a chemical hood, electrophoresis chambers, spectrophotometer, or a PCR machine.
• CONSUMABLES: Some basic consumable laboratory equipment such as pipet tips, plastic tubes, growth media, petri dishes, toothpicks, spreaders, sterile loops, bleach or the like for decontamination and disposal of bioreagents. Some additional experiments might need additional consumables such as gel running buffers, loading buffers, stains to visualize DNA or proteins, cuvettes, PCR master mix, or an autoclave for sterilizing reagents.

Download the teacher’s version of the lab manual for MUCH more information about the experimental outcomes, as well as pre- and post-lab questions to assess student understanding.

Experimental variations

Can fruitflies be used to measure intensity of banana smell?

What is effect on smells if growing the cells at different temperatures?

If you are using the McFarland standard, would more precise or subtle standards be useful?

Rather than telling the students which strain is which, can they identify the strains based on their smell patterns?

Assessment rubrics

Download sample rubrics to modify and use:

Lab Report Score Sheet for Eau That Smell

Lab Report Rubric for Eau That Smell