Secrets of the Rainforest Kit

Secrets of the Rainforest Kit

Overview

This GFP kit is a fantastic way to introduce your students to the world of commercial biotechnology by involving them in a simulated scenario as employees at a company in the drug discovery business.

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Description

Description

The Secrets of the Rainforest™ Kit provides a biotechnology curriculum that takes students on an adventure starting in the rainforest in the Andes, continuing to a biotechnology company engaged in developing new pharmaceutical compounds, and finally to the Food and Drug Administration.

Features and Benefits

  • Applies the principles of DNA restriction analysis, bacterial transformation, and protein purification
  • Introduces your students to the world of commercial biotechnology

With this kit, students are able to:

  • Grow a bacterial library
  • Clone a gene of interest in bacteria
  • Express a protein of interest in bacteria
  • Purify a protein of interest from bacteria
  • Simulate taking a protein to market

How It Works

In the hands-on portion of the exercise, students streak out the bacterial library, grow the bacteria, and select the colonies that have acquired the green glowing trait from a background of nonglowing bacteria. A culture of bacteria is grown to scale up production of the green glowing protein, which is then purified by column chromatography. The actual source of this fluorescent protein is the bioluminescent jellyfish Aequorea victoria.

This practical activity is followed by dry-lab lessons in which the purified green protein is put through the drug discovery process. This includes learning about Food and Drug Administration regulations, animal testing, marketing practices for introducing a new drug, financing, ethical issues, and student presentations. Students examine the needs and viewpoints of advocacy groups, the biotechnology industry, and the FDA. They consider ethical, economic, social, and practical issues, and develop possible strategies for what they feel are the best outcomes.

More Information

  • Four-session laboratory activity, 45 min per session
  • Provides sufficient materials for eight student workstations, up to four students per workstation

Specifications

Specifications

Kit contains sufficient materials for 8 student workstations
(2–4 students per workstation)
 
Module 1: Preparing a Bacterial Library
 
  Bacterial library, E. coli, lyophilized
1
  LB nutrient agar tablets
5
Petri dishes, 60 mm, sterile
20
Inoculation loops, sterile
20
Disposable plastic transfer pipets
10
Module 2: Protein Purification
 
Ampicillin, lyophilized
1
Arabinose, lyophilized
1
Lysozyme, lyophilized
1
LB nutrient broth tablet
1
Binding buffer
1
Column equilibration buffer
1
Column wash buffer
1
Elution buffer
1
  Chromatography columns
8
Inoculation loops, sterile
20
Disposable plastic transfer pipets
40
Micro test tubes, 2.0 ml, clear
30
Cell culture tubes, 15 ml, sterile
25
Sample collection tubes, 5 ml
25
Foam micro test tube holders
8
Curriculum, including teacher's guide, student manual, and graphic quick guide
1

Ordering

Ordering

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166-0006EDU_tn.jpg
1660006EDU
Bacterial library screening kit, classroom study kit, includes bacterial library and protein purification modules, curriculum, and more, for 32 students; education use only

Refills

Refills

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166-0015EDU_tn.jpg
1660015EDU
Consumable reagents for the GFP chromatography and Secrets of the Rainforest kits (#166-0005EDU, 166-0006EDU), includes ampicillin, arabinose, LB nutrient broth tablet, lysozyme; education use only
Image
166-0016EDU_tn.jpg
1660016EDU
Consumable buffers for the GFP chromatography and Secrets of the Rainforest kits (#166-0005EDU, 166-0006EDU), includes binding, equilibration, wash, and elution buffers; education use only
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166-0413EDU_tn.jpg
1660413EDU
Pkg of 8, hydrophobic interaction chromatography column with cap, for use with Biotechnology Explorer classroom kits; education use only
Image
731-1550EDU_tn.jpg
(Discontinued) Poly-Prep Columns
7311550EDU
Pkg of 50, conical 0.8 x 4 cm empty polypropylene column, 9 cm high, 2 ml bed volume, 10 ml of sample volume; education use only

Documents

Documents

Number Description Options
3051
Secrets of the Rain Forest Kit, Biotechnology Explorer, Quick Guide
4006098
Instruction Manual, Secrets of the Rain Forest Kit, Biotechnology Explorer