Modeling blood cell differentiation

During this activity, you will model the process of cell differentiation drawing a model of a blood cell through division and differentiation. You will start as a blood stem cell or hematopoietic stem cell. Environmental factors will determine which genes are activated and which ones are not, determining what type of blood cell you will become.

For this process you will need

• a pieces of paper

• a pencil with an eraser

• clay

• rubberbands

• push pins or tacks

• pink, green, and silver chenille stems or twist ties

• toothpicks

• paperclips