DNA Visibility: Microscopic or Not? Can You Isolate Your DNA At Home?
To determine if it is possible to extract your DNA and see it without using special laboratory equipment.
I predict you cannot see your DNA without special laboratory equipment but the experiment might be able to crack the nucleus covering the DNA.
1. Gather all materials and set up working area.
2. Create Solution #1: 8 grams of Sodium Chloride and 92 ml of Distilled water. Mix and stir with Glass Rod.
3. Create Solution #2: 25 ml of Liquid Soap and 75 ml of Distilled Water. Mix and Stir.
4. Wash mouth and make sure it is clean.
5. Swirl 10ml of bottled water (not distilled in your mouth).
6. Spit the water into clean cup (this should contain your DNA).
7. Use Syringe and add 1 ml of Solution #1 (Sodium Chloride) into clean test tube.
8. Add spit cell/DNA water into same test tube.
9. Add 1 ml of Solution #2 (Liquid Soap)
10. Close the Tube and gently swirl and turn it upside down and back gently.
11. Add 5 ml of Rubbing Alcohol to the test tube.
12. Wait for 5 minutes for results and see if DNA becomes visible.
During my experiment I noticed that it is possible to not have enough DNA in your mouth to test. After I completed the steps in my procedure, I waited for 5 minutes and noticed 2 layers but my DNA did not appear. To confirm that I had not made any mistakes, I repeated the procedure with a family member’s DNA. After completing the second round, I was able to see 2 different layers in my test tube. The alcohol was less dense and it rose to the top. The bottom layer was murky/cloudy and settled under the alcohol layer. I also noticed that the DNA floated to the top of the test tube and got trapped in the alcohol layer. After doing some research, I learned that DNA dissolves in water but not in alcohol. That explains why it drifted to the top.
I was curious to see what the DNA would look like under a microscope. I used my Edu Science Microscope and used a syringe to take a sample of the top layer of the test tube and placed it on a blank slide. I covered it with a slide cover and looked at it under 40x magnification. (see microscope pictures).
This experiment connects to the real world because DNA makes up the body. My experiment was to see if you can extract it, but in labs with bigger equipment, you can see DNA is important because it helps us find out about different diseases and gives us information about what we are made of.
In conclusion, I found that my hypothesis was partially correct. The alcohol was able to crack the nucleus surrounding the DNA, allowing the DNA to float and get trapped in the alcohol layer. All this was done without the use of special laboratory equipment. However, my hypothesis was also incorrect because I predicted you could not see the DNA. I found that it is possible to see DNA without special laboratory equipment. As mentioned in my Observations, I also decided to use a microscope to see what DNA actually looked like at a 10x and 40x magnification. I found that you can actually see the DNA and how it is shaped and defined even more clear than without using microscope.