Recent proteomic studies have led scientists to estimate that there are almost a million different proteins in a single human cell.  The function and properties of these proteins are highly distinct ranging from structural proteins involved in cell integrity, including hydrophobic cell…

The Quantitative Precipitin Technique is a simple technique that is routinely used in the analysis of antibody and antigen interactions and for the estimation of the antibody or antigen content in a sample. The technique is based on the interaction of antibody and antigen to form a large protein…

Microorganisms, such as bacteria and fungi, are all around us. This kit allows students to collect samples from the world around them and grow the microorganisms so that students can visualize the microorganisms.  This teaches students how to plate and grow microorganisms.   …

Determination of protein concentration is an essential technique in all aspects of protein studies and proteomics.    The Assays for Protein Quantification kit includes three of the most widely used protein assays and allows for a direct comparison of the three assays that teaches…

Water pollution is a major problem throughout the world, raising severe concerns about health and sanitization issues.  A common problem in polluted water is the presence of bacteria, particularly coliform bacteria from fecal matter, which can directly result in disease, as well as act as a…

Following restriction enzyme digestion of DNA molecules, researchers need to rejoin the ends of the DNA to generate recombinant DNA, a process known as ligation.  Ligation of DNA is achieved with the bacterial enzyme T4 DNA ligase, which catalyzes the formation of phosphodiester bonds. …

This kit is designed to teach 8 groups of four students the principles of Ion Exchange Chromatography and protein purification.  The kit contains the reagents to allow students to: Equilibrate a DEAE agarose column Load a protein sample on the column (amylase, lysozyme or a mixture of…

This lab activity teaches the use of highly specific matching properties of antigen-antibody for detection of antigenic or antibody proteins in complex samples.   One such immunodetection method is widely known as Dot Blot. The method involves applying small volumes of antigens or test…

This kit is designed to teach 8 groups of four students the principles of ELISA (Enzyme Linked ImmunoSorbent Assays).   The kit contains the reagents to allow students to: Conduct a serial dilution of a stock amylase solution to create standards of known concentration Bind known…

This lab activity is designed to study highly specific lock-key matching properties of antigen-antibody and how this highly specific interaction can be exploited as a tool for research and analysis. This study involves the use of an immunodiffusion technique in which antigen and antibody are…

This kit is designed to teach 8 groups of four students the principles of Western blotting. The kit contains the reagents to allow students to: Conduct a serial dilution of a stock amylase solution Prepare samples for PAGE electrophoresis Separate proteins by electrophoresis …

This Biotechnology Basics™ by Ellyn Daugherty is designed to teach students the basic principles of measuring small volumes (<500µl) using micropipettes. The kit is supplied with all the reagents to allow 8 groups of 4 students to learn about P-1000, P-200 or P-100 and P-20 or P-10…

Size exclusion chromatography (SEC), also called gel filtration chromatography or gel-permeation chromatography (GPC), uses porous particles to separate molecules of different sizes.  It is generally used to separate biological molecules and to determine molecular weights and molecular weight…

This kit is designed to teach 8 groups of four students the principles of Protein Electrophoresis. The kit contains the reagents to allow students to: Conduct a serial dilution of a stock amylase solution Prepare samples for PAGE electrophoresis Separate and distinguish proteins by…

This Biotechnology Basics™ kit by Ellyn Daugherty is designed to teach students about RFLP (restriction fragment length polymorphisms) and its use in crime scene investigations. Students will use restriction enzyme digestions of victim, suspect and crime scene DNA and then visualize the…

An important and essential tool in protein analysis is electrophoresis.  Protein electrophoresis allows researchers to separate complex protein samples by their molecular size and/or net charge on polyacrylamide gels.  The proteins can be subsequently visualized with various protein…

Today’s media routinely covers forensic stories of criminals captured and innocents released using the powerful DNA fingerprinting technique. This kit allows students to carry out their own criminal investigation by comparing DNA samples collected from suspects to DNA collected at a…

Agarose gel electrophoresis is a routinely used tool for separating nucleic acids.    Nucleic acids are negatively charged molecules, which when loaded onto the solid agarose matrix, migrate in the presence of an electric field, separating the nucleic acids by size.   …

Our Bacterial Gram Staining kit is supplied with three strains of bacteria and all the necessary prealiquoted components to carry out the Gram staining to determine Gram positive and negative bacteria. The Gram staining method was first described in 1844 by the Danish bacteriologist Hans…

Bacterial plasmids, the non-genomic transferable DNA, can easily be purified from bacteria using numerous techniques.  The purification of DNA is important for genetic research as it provides a source of transferable DNA and allows researchers to isolate large amounts of recombinant DNA. …

Determination of protein concentration is an essential technique in all aspects of protein studies and proteomics.  The Assays for Protein Quantification kit includes three of the most widely used protein assays and allows for a direct comparison of the three assays that teaches students…

Proteins are the building blocks of life and there are estimated to be almost 1 million different proteins in a normal animal cell.  Each protein has very different and unique physical properties. The Physical Properties of Proteins kit is a lab activity that enables students to investigate…

Genomic DNA isolation is a crucial technique in molecular biology, genetic manipulation and biotechnology.  To carry out these exciting and innovative sciences, researchers require an original source of DNA, which is easy to acquire as it is found in every living organism.  Genomic DNA is…

An interesting hands-on lab activity that teaches students the skills required for the isolation of bacteria from test samples. This kit teaches aseptic handling techniques and cultivation of bacteria.   Using bacterial culture techniques, students discover and isolate the bacteria…

Hydrophobic chromatography is based on the fact that protein molecules can have extensive hydrophobic regions.  These hydrophobic regions, in media favoring hydrophobic interactions, such as an aqueous solution with high salt concentration, can bind to hydrophobic ligands coupled to an…

This kit is designed to teach 8 groups of four students the principles of cheese making.   The kit contains the reagents to allow students to: Set up a controlled experiment & collect numerical data Determine which curdling agent tested produces cheese at the fastest rate …

A hands on lab activity to study immunoaffinity chromatography and use a specific antibody to purify antigenic proteins from complex samples. This technique involves performing a chromatography procedure using antigen or antibody immobilized on a chromatographic resin.   The solution…

Nucleic acids (DNA and RNA) and proteins are routinely resolved by electrophoresis, which separates molecules based on size and/or charge. Following electrophoresis, the molecules need to be extracted from the electrophoresis medium for use in downstream applications and experiments.…

Dialysis is a routinely used technique in research laboratories to “change” the solution a biomolecule is dissolved in. Often the buffers used to isolate biomolecules, such as proteins, are not compatible with downstream applications due to high concentrations of reagents, such as…

Antibiotics play a crucial role in the manipulation, screening and killing of bacteria in a range of biotechnology processes.  This kit specifically teaches the basic principles of antibiotics, bacterial resistance and susceptibility. Students learn and understand the use of antibiotic…

This Biotechnology Basics™ kit by Ellyn Daugherty is designed to teach the basic principles of a gel box, specifically horizontal agarose gel electrophoresis. The kit is supplied with all the reagents necessary to conduct 4 gel box science experiments, each using a gel box (not supplied). …

Lab activity that teaches use of specific lock-key matching properties of antigen-antibody for detection and characterization of antibody or antigenic proteins in complex samples. One such widely used method is known as Western Blot analysis. Western Blot analysis involves electrophoresis…