The Little Red Hill

This week we focused on DNA extraction. In DNA extraction the cells are broken open through 1 of two ways: enzymatic methods or physical methods. Through enzymatic methods the lysozyme chews up the cell wall. Physical methods include bead beating or fringe press. The method we used was bead beating. In DNA extraction when the cell burse open the DNA, proteins, RNA, bits of cell membrane, and lipids are all present and the DNA must be separated from these substances. To do this you must perform either DNA precipitation or filtration. The method we used was filtration. For the actual extraction there were a number of steps performed. The strains we used were 27, 29, 34, 44, 45, and 48. Following the extraction we ran the DNA from our stains on the gel to check for the presence of DNA. Following this we took pictures of the gel plate so we could visualize it better. In addition to DNA extraction, we also checked our soil plates from January 21 and 26. Our soil sample came from the Little Red Hill (LRH-03-1). Some things which were noted in these samples were the presence of Streptomyces, which was evident from the white fuzzy colonies formed. The soil collected from this area had higher growth numbers than the soil collected from other areas studied. There was not a big growth change from the -1 diluted plates and the -2 diluted plates. Also, the marine agar radiated plates had lower colony counts than the other plates which signified that radiation survivors do not like high nutrients or salt, which was present in the other media.