Chemistry may be an individual science but it is related to other sciences to like Biology. Today's post includes an experiment we did in Biology class. We learned how to extract DNA from strawberries and it was really exciting, interesting and easy! So, I made a video for you, describing how you can extract strawbbery DNA by yourselves. I also added some pictures from the day we did the experiment in class in order to make it easier for you to understand the whole process. Good luck!

1. from strawberries

2.  1 resealable plastic bag
 Strawberries (fresh or frozen)
 2 teaspoons of dish detergent
 1 teaspoon of salt
 ½ cup of deionized water
 2 plastic cups
 Filtering apparatus
 Ice cold 90 percent rubbing alcohol
 1 wooden popsicle stick or plastic coffee
stirrer
 Gloves
 1 vial

3.  Pull off any green leaves on the strawberries.
 Put some strawberries into the plastic bag,
remove the air and seal it.
 Gently smash the strawberries and crush
them completely. This starts to break open
the cells and release the DNA.

5.  In a plastic cup make your buffer solution:
mix together the deionized water, the salt
and the detergent.
 Add 2 teaspoons of the buffer solution into
the bag with the strawberries. This will
further break open the cells.
 Reseal the bag and continue smashing the
strawberries gently for a while.

7.  Place the coffee filter inside the other
plastic cup.
 Open the bag and pour the strawberry liquid
into the filter. You can gently squeeze the
remaining liquid into the cup.
 Put approximately 4 ml of the liquid into the
vial.

9.  Tilt the vial a little bit and then pour slow
and carefully about 16 ml of cold rubbing
alcohol (until it reaches 20 ml). Do NOT mix
or stir. You have just isolated the DNA from
the rest of the material contained in the
cells of the strawberry.
 Within a few seconds, watch for the
development of a white cloudy substance
(DNA) in the top layer above the strawberry
extract layer.
 Pick up the DNA using a plastic coffee stirrer
or a wooden stick.

11. This is your DNA…

13. You can also save the DNA you
extracted into a small vial
containing alcohol. In the vial with
the strawberry liquid and the
alcohol, DNA will continue appearing
and if you shake it a little bit, it will
have a smooth reddish color.

15. You can keep both vials in normal
atmosphere conditions without
damaging the DNA. Just have in
mind to change the alcohol after
a few years!