Edible Dna

Name ___________________________________________ Section _________________________ Rating ____
PART I:
Background:
When isolated from a cell and stretched out, DNA looks like a twisted ladder. This
shape is called a double helix. The sides of the DNA ladder are called the
backbone and the steps (also called rungs) of the ladder are pairs of small
chemicals called bases. There are four types of chemical bases in DNA: Adenine
(A), Cytosine (C), Guanine (G), and Thymine (T). They form pairs in very specific
ways: Adenine (A) always pairs with Thymine (T) and Cytosine (C) always pairs with
Guanine (G).
Task: Using the materials below, you will construct an edible DNA model.
Materials: toothpicks, gummy candies, glue stick
STEP 1:
A) Assign a nitrogenous base for each color of the gummy candy. You will be needing 4 colors, 1 color each for
Adenine (A), Cytosine (C), Guanine (G), and Thymine (T).
B) Write the complimentary strand for both DNA sequences below:
Sequence 1: T A C G T A T G A A A C
Complimentary Strand: ____________________________ ___________
Sequence 2: T G G T T T A G A A T T
Complimentary Strand: ________________________________________
C) Choose EITHER sequence 1 or sequence 2. Draw a CIRCLE around sequence and complementary strand
you choose. This will be the DNA molecule you will be modeling.
STEP 2:
A) The glue sticks will form the backbone of the DNA molecule, and the gummy candies will be the
nitrogenous bases.
B) Assemble one strand (glue stick) of your DNA molecule. Example:
a. Refer to the color assignment you did on STEP 1 to
choose the correct color to represent the chemical
bases in your sequence.
b. Place a gummy candy on the end of a toothpick so
that the point of the toothpick goes all the way
through. Stick the toothpick into the glue stick as
pictured on the right. Do this for each base of your
DNA strand.
C) When you have completed one DNA strand add the complimentary base pairs to
the other end of each toothpick. REMEMBER: A always pairs with T and G always
pairs with C!
D) Complete your DNA model by attaching the other DNA backbone (glue stick) so
your model looks like a ladder
E) CAREFULLY twist your DNA model so it looks like a double helix
Conclusions Questions:
1. What does the shape of DNA resemble? ______________________________________________________________

2. What is the shape of DNA called? ____________________________________________________________________
3. What are the sides of the DNA molecule called? _______________________________________________________
What was used in this lab to act as the sides of DNA? __________________________________________________
There are 2 things that the sides of the DNA molecules consist of. What are they?
__________________________ &_______________________________
4. What acted as the DNA base pairs in this lab __________________________________________________________

5. Name the 4 bases of a DNA molecule: ________________________________________________________________
6. Which DNA bases pair with each other? ______________________________________________________________
7. How many of each base were in your molecule: A ________ T________ G________ C________
8. What makes your DNA different from someone else’s?
_______________________________________________________________________________________________________
_______________________________________________________________________________________________________
_______________________________________________________________________________________________________
_______________________________________________________________________________________________________
_______________________________________________________________________________________________________
_______________________________________________________________________________________________________
9. Given the following strand of DNA, write its complimentary base sequence below:
a) DNA Sequence: A G C G C T A T C G C T A A T A G C A T
Complimentary Strand: ______________________________________________________________
Without counting, how many thymines are there? ________
EXPLAIN below how you came up with this number
b) What do you notice about the number of bases in the DNA sequence and the complimentary strand?
c) How many total Adenines (A’s) are there in the DNA sequence? (count both strands) ______ __
10. What does DNA stand for? __________________________________________________________________________
11. Where is DNA found in the cell? ______________________________________________________________________
12. What are the building blocks of DNA called? __________________________________________________________
Name the 3 parts that make up the building blocks of DNA:
________________________, ___________________________ & ___________________________

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Name _______________________ Section _ Rating

Materials: toothpicks, gummy candies, glue stick

Complimentary Strand: __________________ _

Complimentary Strand: ________________________________________

1. What does the shape of DNA resemble? ______________________________________________________________

4. What acted as the DNA base pairs in this lab __________________________________________________________

Complimentary Strand: ______________________________________________________________

Without counting, how many thymines are there? ________

EXPLAIN below how you came up with this number

Name the 3 parts that make up the building blocks of DNA:

__________, _ & _______________

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