DNA, or Deoxyribonucleic acid, is the hereditary information in humans and most other plants
and animals. Nearly every cell in a person’s body has the same DNA. It is made up of four
chemical bases called adenine (A), cytosine (C), guanine (G), and thymine (T).
Hi everyone. Today we will be having activity about Human DNA extraction
In this activity, we will obtain DNA from our own cheek cells.
DNA is a remarkable molecule. found inside the nucleus in our body. DNA determines our
physical attributes, including hair colour, eye colour, skin colour and blood type.
For the materials we have….
1. Narrow glass container like a spice jar or test tube (the narrower the container, the
better)
2. 10ml (2 teaspoons) ice cold isopropyl alcohol (80% or higher)
3. 10ml (2 teaspoons) dishwashing liquid
4. 1/4 teaspoon salt
5. 1-3 drops pineapple juice
6. 90ml water
7. Small glasses or cups for mixing
8. Water for initial mouthwash
For the method…..
Note: Put the isopropyl alcohol in the freezer the night before the activity. It won’t freeze, but it’ll
be a nice ice-cold temperature for the activity
1. Pour a small amount of water into a glass.
2. Take a mouthful of water and swish vigorously in the mouth for at least two minutes. Do
not swallow the water.
3. Spit the water into a small cup
4. In another cup, pour 90ml water and add the 2 teaspoons of dishwashing liquid. Stir the
soap solution gently, minimizing bubble formation.
5. Add 2 teaspoons of this soap solution into the water cup containing mouthwash (your
spit).
6. Add salt to the mixture and stir using a spoon.
When you gargle the salt water and spit it back out, some of your cheek cells become
suspended in the salt water. The more vigorously you gargle, the more cheek cells will collect in
the salt water.
The washing up liquid breaks down your cheek cell membranes. This causes the DNA to be
released into the salt water.
DNA is not soluble in alcohol, so it forms a solid where the alcohol and salt water layers meet.
Most other substances from your cheek cells stay dissolved in the salt water layer. The white
strings and clumps you see are thousands of DNA molecules clumped together. Single DNA
molecules are far too small to see with the naked eye.
When you gargle the salt water, you are also collecting some bacterial cells from the inside of
your mouth, so the DNA you see is a mixture of your DNA and bacterial DNA!
7. Transfer the liquid cell solution to the narrow jar until the jar is one-third full.
8. Add a few drops of pineapple juice into the jar and slowly spin the narrow jar to mix the
juice.
9. Take the isopropyl alcohol out of the freezer and pour a small amount of the alcohol into
a cup.
10. Pour 2 teaspoons of isopropyl alcohol into the jar slowly, allowing the alcohol to travel
down the side of the jar and form a layer above the liquid cell mixture. (We recommend
tilting the jar as your pour in the alcohol. Be careful, ensure no liquid spills from the jar
and return to upright position).
11. Leave the jar stand for at least 5 minutes.
12. You should now be able to see a small amount of white web-like substance within the
clear layer of the narrow jar. These are strands of your DNA clumped together!
13. The DNA strands can be a bit difficult to remove from this layer. If you want to give it a
go, you can try using a sieve or using a skewer.