This project is an experiment To investigate the extracted DNA from strawberries and test the outcomes from using different amounts of strawberries. Experiment that is conducted will vary, from the first experiment using 1 strawberry and the second experiment using 2 and the third experiment using 3 strawberries. The outcome of the experiment is predicted to have different results because of using different amounts of strawberries, predicted to extract thicker DNA. The process of the experiment is fun, because I get to do my personal experiment, and change the specifications of the experiment to get different results. There are no major challenges during the whole process, because the experiment succeeded based on the hypothesis.

To achieve the dimension of being innovative, intelligent, and action-oriented, I explored and analyzed various models, methods, and frameworks as a foundation for my research. This project covers the topic of the fundamental property, DNA, where the DNA concentration that best performs the DNA isolation from strawberries is identified among the tested variables involving the amount of strawberries and the volume of isopropyl alcohol. I underwent a range of processes from interpreting, exploring, and branching variables that are possible to be tested and determining a proper and applicable protocol to appropriately conduct my strawberry DNA extraction experiment in a thorough manner. I decided to apply a CTAB-based protocol which centralizes the idea of ionic detergent and a chloroform-isoamyl alcohol based solution that aims to maximize the DNA extraction process from the strawberry.
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This is one of my summatives from Semester 1 of Year-10. We had to do an experiment of extracting the DNA of a strawberry and analyzing it further on. I was very excited because I didn’t know what to expect. From research images, DNA is in the form of a double helix shape and I was confused since there is no way people just extract a double helix shaped object. The process of the extraction was fairly simple, just there are a lot of steps for the procedure.

The tools and materials are your casual household items except for a mini microscope to observe the extracted DNA, some of these materials are like beakers, spoon, isopropyl alcohol, dish soap, salt and of course strawberries, at least 3 of them. When I extracted the DNA, I was somewhat surprised and a little disappointed because it’s not as awesome as I thought it would be. The shape was a white transparent semi liquid, semi solid, transparent object. It looked like a slug and formed the feeling of it. However, I was extravagant to find out the result. It was interesting to see what the form of a DNA is like as well as how the extraction process functions. Lastly we made a report on the experiment of our analysis as well as answering the inquiry questions.

The strawberry DNA extraction was an at-home experiment with the ingredients provided by the school. Deoxyribonucleic or DNA is a molecule that contains a piece of biological information that makes species unique from one another, every living thing has DNA stored in its body and it passes down to its offspring. Experimenting with DNA extraction from strawberries has been around since the 2010s, the experiment uses strawberries because its octoploid, their cells have eight duplicate chromosomes which are easier to extract with a naked eye (Children’s Museum Indianapolis). The aim is to observe and compare the extracted DNA with different amounts of strawberries and isopropyl alcohol.

After doing the experiment, the result shows that the mixture using one strawberry doesn’t appear to have any DNA strands, however, in the mixture using two strawberries the white strands appear even though it was little and hard to see. This proves that the effect of using more strawberries in the experiment can affect the number of DNA strands coming out of the surface. When comparing the experiment of two strawberries with 5 ml of isopropyl alcohol and two strawberries with 15 ml of isopropyl alcohol, it appears to have a significant difference in the number of DNA strands visible. Adding 5 ml results in only appearing some fizzes, while adding 15 ml also creates a fizz, but clumps of white strands of DNA are also visible.

During the experiments, there was still some trouble to encounter. There were times when adding 5 ml to both experiments nothing comes out, this makes such a worry thinking that the experiment was a failure, but then continuing the experiment and documenting it there was a sigh of relief when white strands started appearing. If there is another chance to redo the experiment, maybe adding more amount of strawberries and isopropyl alcohol to the variable can result in a more detailed experiment. There were some ingredients where the measurement isn’t correct, so in the next experiment, the measurements and amounts should be watched over to give a more accurate result.