Spongebob Genetics Worksheet

 

Create-a-Baby Genetics

So doing this project, I was able to learn new information along with understanding what I already knew a little about. It was quiet fun creating different traits with just a flip of a coin. In the end creating the baby's face was quiet difficult and embarrassing because I am terrible at drawing.

Meiosis, Mitosis and Cloning

Meiosis, Mitosis and Cloning

So there are three words that all mean something similar to one another. They are all ways new cells are made. So first of all Cloning is actually the process used to create identical copies of cells. Some common things that are cloned are insects and plants but the most common is bacteria. There are people who want to clone actual people for all the wrong ways but they haven't exactly figured out how to clone people which is probably for the best. So mitosis and meiosis sound pretty similar but they are very different. By using the slideshow off of moodle I was able to make a popplet of the differences between mitosis and meiosis. Here is the link.

Investigating Independent Assorment

INVESTIGATING INDEPENDENT ASSORTMENT: CONSIDERING MORE THAN ONE GENE AT A TIME

Mendel observed the effects of independent assortment when he carried out his dihybrid crosses. When he crossed two plants that bred true for different versions of two traits, the first-generation offspring all displayed the same phenotype (the dominant phenotype for both traits). However, when these plants were crossed, the second-generation offspring included four different phenotypes.

Mendel carefully recorded the numbers of phenotypes among the offspring of many dihybrid crosses. He found that certain combinations of phenotypes among the second-generation offspring occur in a 9:3:3:1 ratio, on the average. We now know that this pattern occurs because genes on pairs of homologous chromosomes are sorted out for distribution into one gamete or another independently of gene pairs of other chromosomes.

Activity

In this activity, you will first access the meiosis tutorial provided by the University of California, Santa Barbara. The tutorial demonstrates the random assortment of chromosomes into gametes. Next you will complete a tutorial quiz about independent assortment. This is part of The Biology Project from the University of Arizona.

Part 1.

Use your browser to go to the meiosis tutorial at

http://www.sumanasinc.com/webcontent/animations/content/independentassortment.html

Use the tutorial to learn how to determine which allele combinations are possible in two or even three trait crosses.

Part 2.

Use your browser to go to the independent assortment tutorial at

http://www.biology.arizona.edu/mendelian_genetics/problem_sets/dihybrid_cross/dihybrid_cross.html

Go through questions 1-9 of the tutorial. If you answer any question incorrectly, review the tutorial material and try again.

When you have completed this much of the tutorial, answer the questions below:

1. What type of gametes will be produced by a plant of genotype AaBb?

The type that will be produced are AB, Ab, aB, ab.

2. What type of gametes will be produced by a plant of genotype aabb?

The type that will be produced is ab.

3. List all the genotypes you would find among the offspring of an AaBb x aabb test cross.

All the genotypes that I found among the offspring are AaBa, Aabb, aaBb and aabb.

4. What is the expected phenotypic ratio of the offspring of an AaBb x aabb test cross? Show the punnett square you would use for predicting the outcomes

.

 

5.What are the genotypic and phenotypic ratios from a AaBb x Aabb mating? Show the punnett square you would use for predicting the outcomes.

6. List all possible gametes from a trihybrid individual whose genotype is RrSsTt.

All the possible gametes from a trihybrid individual whose genotype is RrSsTt are RST, Rst, STr, and rst.

Onion Root Tips Mitosis

Describe the mitosis what the phases looked like. 

ONION ROOT TIPS AND THE CELL CYCLE

In this activity, you will calculate the lengths of the various phases of the cell cycle in an onion root tip. First you will view some slides and graphics of onion root tips provided by the Molecular Expressions Photo Gallery. Then you will complete the online activity provided by the Biology Project at the University of Arizona.

Part 1.

Use your browser to go to Molecular Expressions Photo Gallery: Mitosis

http://www.microscopy.fsu.edu/micro/gallery/mitosis/mitosis.html

Notice in the micrograph at the top of the page that there are cells in a variety of stages. View the onion slides in this section, then click on "mitosis" in the sentence "Learn the steps in mitosis ... " This will take you to a Java tutorial.  Keep in mind what you have learned here as you proceed to the second part of the activity.

Part 2.

Use your browser to go to Online Onion Root Tips at

http://www.biology.arizona.edu/cell_bio/activities/cell_cycle/assignment.html

Begin by reading the description of the five major cell phases. You will need to keep this information in mind during the activity.

Make a copy of the data sheet that appears on the second page. You will need it to answer the questions.

Proceed through the activity, identifying the phase for each cell you are shown. Pay attention to the hints if you misidentify a cell at first.

When you have completed the activity, answer the following questions:

1. What percent of cells were in interphase?

The percent of cells that were in the interphase stages was 56%.

2. What percent were in mitosis?

The percent that was in mitosis was 44%.

3. Which phase of mitosis takes the longest?

The phase that take the longest is prophase.

4. During which stage is the nucleolus visible as a dark spot?

The stage that the nucleolus is visible as a dark spot is interphase.

5. How can you recognize a cell in metaphase?

You can recognize that a cell is in the metaphase stage by knowing that the chromosomes are attached to the kinetochore microtubules begin to align in one phase.

So below are some pictures of other cells that I looked at through the microscope.

 

Stem Cells Webquest

Stem Cells

Research using stem cells is a controversial and often misunderstood area of modern scientific research. In this exercise you will visit the official National Institutes of Health (NIH) website on stem cell information to gain a greater understanding of the fundamentals of this topic.

Activity:

Go to the NIH site on stem cells: http://stemcells.nih.gov/index.asp and click on the Info Center link “Stem Cell Basics.”  Starting with the “Introduction” section, read the information presented.

Use the site’s glossary to find definitions for these important terms:

Cell-based therapies- is the treatment in which stem cells are induced to differentiate into the specific cell type required to repair damaged or destroyed cells or tissues.
Differentiation- the process whereby an unspecialized embryonic cells acquires the features of a specialized cell such as a heart, liber, or muscle cell. Differentiation is controlled by the interaction of a cell's genes with the physical and chemical conditions outside the cell, usually through signaling pathways involving proteins embedded in the cell surface.
Embryonic stem cell line- embryonic stem cells, which have been cultured under in vitro conditions that allow proliferation without differentiation from months to years.
Proliferation- expansion of the number of cells by the continuous division of single cells into two identical daughter cells.
Plasticity-
Pluripotent- the state of a single cell that is capable of differentiating into all tissues of an organism, but not alone capable of sustaining of organismal development.  

Use this site and/or other resources to figure out the basics of what stem cells are. Be able to answer these questions:

1. What are the unique properties of all stem cells?  Explain in your own words what each property means.

So the unique properties of all stem cells are they're capable of dividing and renewing themselves for long periods, they're unspecialized, they can rise to specialized cell type.

2. What are the two main kinds of stem cells used by researchers?  What are the major differences between the two types in terms of their sources and usefulness to researchers?  Give examples of possible uses for each type of stem cell.

The two main kinds of stem cells used by researchers are embryonic stem cells and non embryonic stem cells. The major difference between the two are their different abilities in the number and the type of cells they can become.

3. List some of the diseases that scientists think may be treated using stem cell research and suggest how stem cells might be used to treat each disease.

Three diseases that scientist think may be treated using stem cell research are diabetes, heart disease, stroke, spinal cord injury, and parkinson disease.

4. What are the necessary characteristics that laboratory-manipulated stem cells will need to have in order to be successfully used in cell-based therapies (what will stem cells need to be able to do)?

The necessary characteristics that laboratory-manipulated stem cell will need to have in order to be successfully used in cell based therapies are to create a significant amounts of tissue and they have to be able to survive after they have been transplanted in the receiver.
 

Genetics

If you click on this link you will find some definitions that we learned in the process of getting an understanding of genetics.