BIO 599 Graduate Independent Study
Luanne LaRose
Advisor: Dr. Edwin Wong
Fall 2006

Nature of the project;
This is a lab designed to increase middle-school students¹ understanding of the relationship between genotype and phenotype. To accomplish this goal, students will show that fish with even slight differences in appearance (phenotype) possess DNA sequences (genotype) that are also different.

Methods used in the project
Students will do DNA fingerprinting of aquarium fish using a method called Random Amplified DNA Polymorphism analysis (RAPD). The research component will be to successfully isolate DNA from fish, and determine the best RAPD primers that will generate different banding patterns among fish samples. The primers will have to be individually tested first to see which ones will accomplish this goal.

The materials needed are: - goldfish and other aquarium fish species - DNA isolation reagents - PCR reagents - RAPD primers - Gel electrophoresis equipment and reagents - Agarose & stain

Criteria to evaluate the student's performance
The teacher and the students will collect unique fingerprints from the various fish samples, and report on their results in a paper due in Spring 2007. Results will also be presented at a poster presentation in May, 2007, at WCSU as part of the WestConn Institute for Science Teacher Research (WISTR) initiative.