Purpose: 

The main goal of lab today was to set up a PCR reaction using the eDNA that we collected from a Live Oak tree located on campus. Furthermore, we began drafting what we wanted our poster look like. This poster will contain all of the information that we have researched and data we have collected.

Procedure:

PCR Preparation

1. we collected our tubes, one contained water, one contained v4 primer, and the other contained our DNA
2. in a new tube, dilute the DNA by 10 by mixing 1μl of DNA with .9 μl of water
3. collect two tubes containing 12.5μl of the master mix
4. label one tube control and the other experimental (we labeled our TEST)
5. make the solutions for each tube

control tube

6. add 1 μl of the v4 primer and 11.5 μl of water ( the contents of the tube should total to a total volume of 25 μl)

TEST tube

7.  add 1 μl of the diluted DNA, 1 μl of of the v4 primer, and 10.5 μl of water ( the contents of the tube should total to a total volume of 25 μl)

8. place the control and test tube in a rack and number the location of your tube on the worksheet provided

Poster 

For the poster, we essentially just drafted some potential ideas for what we wanted our poster to look like. It will include nearly all  the contents that a methods research paper would. We plan to add figures that will aid in describing our research and also pictures taken throughout the research process in lab.

Data: 

Our data showed that our DNA contained 598 ng/μl so we diluted it by 10 and calculated that we needed 1 μl of the diluted DNA which would contain 59.8 ng/μl.

Observations: 

When pipetting more than 10μl of a substance, we were advise to continue using the P10 pipette and cit the volume in half and pipette twice. This will help with accuracy and is more efficient than using a larger pipette which could lead to errors in the amount of volume transferred.

Conclusion/ Future Goals: 

This lab has allowed me to become more familiar with how to solve for different values using the C1V1=C2V2 formula. I have been able to understand the calculations more than I did when we first began using the formula. In the future, I plan to continue brainstorming on ideas for our poster that we will present. I will also continue to study for our in class quiz that we will have next week.