Practical 6: Prepare and stain a root tip squash to observe the

stages of mitosis

Objectives Safety
● To know how to prepare a temporary slide ● Eye protection must be worn.
of a root tip to observe mitosis ● Take care with glassware and scissors.
● To recognise the stages of mitosis in ● Acetic orcein stain is corrosive, causes burns,
dividing cells has an irritating vapour and will stain. Wear
● To identify hazards, associated risks and eye protection and avoid contact with skin. If
control measures for the procedure contact does occur, wash the area thoroughly
with water for 10 minutes and tell your
teacher. Avoid inhaling the vapour. If you spill
the stain, do not attempt to mop it up; tell your
teacher instead.
● Avoid skin contact with the hydrochloric acid.
● If your microscope uses daylight illumination,
be careful not to use it where sunlight could
strike the mirror.
● The water bath at 60 °C will scald your skin;
cool under cold running water if you get
splashed.
● Do not handle electric plugs, sockets or
switches with wet hands.
Equipment per student/group Notes on equipment
Eye protection One per student
Garlic glove with growing root tip These should be kept in water until immediately
before use to ensure freshness. A bulb of garlic
with the lower half submerged in water should
begin to root within 2-3 days
Scissors One pair per group
Small bottle with lid or laboratory stretch film These bottles could be filled with the 1 mol dm−3
hydrochloric acid and placed in the water bath in
advance of the lesson. The bottles should be of
such a size that a garlic clove can be placed in the
top with the roots reaching into the acid.
microscope School microscopes with ×400 maximum
magnification are usually suitable.
water bath at 60oC
hydrochloric acid 1 mol dm-3 HCl is a low hazard at this strength. At 2 mol dm−3
the acid is an irritant. It is corrosive at a higher
molarity than 6.5 mol dm−3.
Acetic orcein stain in a small bottle or vial One vial of stain per student or group.
Stock solution is corrosive. Wear eye protection
and chemical-resistant gloves and use a fume
cupboard when diluting. The diluted solution of 10
ml stock to 12 ml water is also corrosive and does
not store well. The hazards of using the acetic

© Pearson Education Ltd 2018. Copying permitted for purchasing institution only. This material is not copyright free.
Practical activities have been safety checked but not trialled. Users may need to adapt the risk assessment
information to local circumstances. 1
 orcein stain are very much reduced by dispensing
a small volume of the stain into a bottle for
students.
Bottles require pop-on lids, screw-on lids or
laboratory stretch film to contain the stain. Lids will
need a pin-prick hole or should be left slightly
unscrewed when heating to prevent ejection.
Place a small volume of the stain (approximately
2 mm depth) in each bottle and label with a
hazard warning.
glass microscope slides One per group
coverslips One per group
fine forceps One per group
white tile One per group
Stopclock
dissecting needle Two per group
paper towels Two sheets per group
Eye protection One per student
Garlic glove with growing root tip These should be kept in water until immediately
before use to ensure freshness. A bulb of garlic
with the lower half submerged in water should
begin to root within 2-3 days
Scissors One pair per group
Notes

© Pearson Education Ltd 2018. Copying permitted for purchasing institution only. This material is not copyright free.
Practical activities have been safety checked but not trialled. Users may need to adapt the risk assessment
information to local circumstances. 2