383 bp
383 bp
1058 bp
1058 bp
929 bp
929 bp
1857 bp
1857 bp
(-)
(-)
18
18
19
19
17
17
16
16
15
15
14
14
13
13
12
12
Student:
Student: During our experiment we found the following ^

The term allele is used to describe different forms of a gene or genetic site. For those who have the Alu repeat, they are said to be positive for the insertion and we denote that allele configuration with a “+” sign. If the Alu repeat is absent we give it a “-“ sign. If the student has a single band, whether it’s a single 715 bp band or a single 415 bp band, then both their number 16 chromosomes must be the same in regards to the Alu insertion. If that happens then they’re said to be homozygous and can be identified with the symbols “+/+” or “-/-“. If a student has a 415 bp band and a 715 bp band they are said to be heterozygous and the symbol “+/-“ is assigned. A student’s combination on alleles is called their genotype. As you can see in the picture above, all of the students in my group were homozygous “-/-“ at the 383 bp band.

Sources of Error: After the class contained their cheek cells into the tubes that were provided all of the tubes got mixed up so therefore most of the class didn’t get their cheek cells/DNA back. That could have caused a huge error in the results because we don’t know whose cheek cells we were using and maybe if we had our original samples the data would be much different.

Improvements: To improve this experiment there should be better labeling of the tubes so that nothing will be mixed up and we can get accurate data.

References: Campbell Biology Test book