AP BIO Transformation Lab

AP BIO Transformation Lab

Introduction:
1) Genetic exchange is common in all organisms, however it is not necessary for prokaryotes, who may do so through transduction, transformation, and conjugation.
2) Transduction occurs when a phage incorporates some of its hosts DNA into its own, then infects another, transformation occurs when a bacteria acquires DNA from its environment, and Conjugation transpires when one bacteria builds a link to another for the purpose of exchanging DNA.
3) Plasmids are small circular double-stranded DNA fragments which are not essential to a cell’s functioning, and it was not until recently that much of this information was discovered.
4) R plasmids encode for resistance for antibiotics and other such mortality factors, and such plasmids were quickly passed on through evolution.
5) Transformation was the first to be discovered during an experiment with mice, in which dead disease cells were mixed with live ones and were found to cause death from transformation.
6) Bacteria are only subject to transformation if the environment is ideal according to genes encoded within their DNA.
7) While E. Coli may not transform naturally, they may be forced to do so artificially by exposing them to a calcium chloride solution.
Summary: We conducted an experiment to see if E. Coli can be artificially made to transform.
Procedure:
1) First we obtained 4 tubes and added calcium chloride to each of them.
2) We added the E. Coli to each of the tubes.
3) We added plasmids containing the resistance to two of the tubes, after hot and cold shocking them.
4) After allowing the bacteria time to transform, we then tranfered them onto plates containing nutrients and left them overnight.
5) The next day we monitored the levels of bacteria on each of the plates.




Data:
Agar w/ plasmid Present
Agar Present
Agar w/ ampicillin No Growth
Agar w/ ampicillin w/ plasmid No Growth
Conclusion: Unfortunately, we did not observe any growth on the ampicillin...