Gizmos Student Exploration| DNA Profiling

Student Exploration: DNA Profiling Vocabulary: DNA polymerase, DNA profiling, gel electrophoresis, gene, mutation, non-coding region, polymerase chain reaction, primer, short tandem repeat Prior Knowledge Questions (Do these BEFORE using the Gizmo.) In 1985, Darryl Hunt was convicted of murder. While Hunt was in jail, a new method for analyzing DNA evidence was invented. The DNA evidence on the victim did not match Hunt’s DNA but did match that of another prisoner. After 19 years spent behind bars, Hunt was finally declared innocent and released from prison in 2004. 1. DNA is used to tell people apart. What aspects of DNA do you think make this possible? - The lengths of the repeated sequences in DNA - The DNA sequences themselves 2. What are some possible uses for technology that can identify people based on their DNA? - Gel electrophoresis Gizmo Warm-up DNA profiling does not just compare people’s entire genome side by side. Instead, a very particular part of the DNA is compared. In the DNA Profiling Gizmo you will learn about the differences in DNA that make DNA profiling possible and you will use that knowledge to design your own DNA profiling test. Click on the crime lab in the Forensic training section. You are looking at a strand of DNA. DNA contains genes and non-coding regions between genes. Click on Non-coding A. 1. You are looking at a portion of the non-coding A section for three different people. Are these sections the same or different? Explain. - The sections are different. Person 1 has the longest section, person 3 has the second-longest section and person 2 has the shortest section. a. Click Previous then click on Gene A. Are there differences in gene A for the three people?