Educational Materials

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Oil spills cause devastation to the environment, killing sea life, birds, and coastal plants. Spraying areas of contamination with oil-eating microbes accelerates the degradation of the oil. This process is known as bioremediation. In this open-ended experiment, students grow a mixture of oil-eating bacteria and observe their effectiveness at degrading a variety of oils.

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When normal cells are grown in culture they stop growing when they become overcrowded (contact inhibition). Cancer cells in culture grow in an uncontrolled way because they have lost this property. This helps tumours to form in the body. In addition, many different cell types can be present in a single tumour. This experiment allows students to see the differences between normal and cancer cells in both their growth and cell types.

Supplier: EDVOTEK

This experiment uses PCR to amplify a small section of Lambda DNA via a 2-step process, saving valuable classroom time and allowing completion of the lab in one session.

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According to the World Health Organisation, between two and three million cases of skin cancer occur globally every year. Many of these cases are caused by preventable damage to DNA by UV light. In this experiment, students expose plasmid DNA to shortwave UV light to simulate the effect of sunbathing. The DNA is then analysed by agarose gel electrophoresis to observe the damage.

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The Green Fluorescent Protein (GFP) from the jellyfish Aequorea victoria is used extensively in all areas of science. Many organisms have been transformed with the GFP gene, the gene responsible for bioluminescence in jellyfish. It has proven to be so useful that scientists have mutated it to produce Blue Fluorescent Protein (BFP). In this simple experiment, students transform bacteria either by GFP, BFP or both.

Supplier: EDVOTEK

This experiment introduces students to Southern blotting as a tool for DNA fingerprinting in a hypothetical paternity determination. DNA fragments are first separated by agarose gel electrophoresis, then transferred to a nylon membrane and finally visualised by staining.

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Suppressor genes, such as p53, are essential for cell functions. Mutations in the p53 gene can be correlated to predisposition for certain cancers. Mutations of genes can either be inherited or accumulated due to environmental insults. This experiment deals with a family pedigree determination of several generations relating to cancer formation due to p53 gene mutation.

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Drinking water is routinely tested for contamination. If a screening tests positive, more sophisticated tests are required. One such test uses PCR in multiplex format. In this experiment, students test for the presence of three separate, classroom-safe organisms in a water sample using a single PCR reaction.

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Ready-to-Load™ kit for introducing the use of restriction enzymes as a tool to digest lambda DNA at specific nucleotide sequences.

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Genetic modification of plants is a controversial area of biotechnology. All such experiments in plants begin with establishing plant cells in culture. This involves de-differentiating plant cells to form plant 'stem cells'. In this experiment, students establish cell cultures of African violets from leaves. They then use plant growth regulators to encourage root growth from the cultured cells, and produce a mature plant.

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Infectious mononucleosis is commonly known as the 'kissing disease'. The causative agent is Epstein-Barr virus (EBV), which can be transmitted through saliva during kissing. In this experiment, students search for the presence of EBV using the ELISA reaction to detect specific viral proteins.

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Ready-to-Load™ PCR kit introduces students to the principles and applications of the Polymerase Chain Reaction (PCR). This simulation experiment does not contain human DNA and does not require a thermal cycler.

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When DNA is subcloned in the pUC polylinker region, β-galactosidase production is interrupted, resulting in the inability of cells to hydrolyse X-Gal. This results in the production of white colonies amongst a background of blue colonies. This experiment provides a DNA fragment together with a linear plasmid and T4 DNA ligase. Following the ligation to synthesis the recombinant plasmid, competent E. coli cells are transformed and the number of recombinant antibiotic-resistant white and blue colonies are counted. β-galactosidase activity is assayed from blue and white bacterial cells.

Supplier: EDVOTEK

In this experiment, transformed cells take up a plasmid containing the Green Fluorescent Protein (GFP) gene. The GFP gene was isolated from the jellyfish Aequorea victoria. Transformed colonies expressing the GFP protein are visibly green in normal light but will fluoresce brightly when exposed to longwave UV light.

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Students use primers for a 300 base pair Alu insertion in chromosome 16 (PV92) to determine their own genotype. They can then compare their class results with others around the world over the internet.

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Observe the differences between mammalian cell types and how these cells funciton. Cells are fixed on microscope slides and students stain the cells on the slide to view morphological characteristics of the cell types. These cells are very safe for classroom use.