Wolbachia Project Lab Guides

The Wolbachia Project is organized as a five-part lab series. Each Project Guide has been designed to facilitate inquiry-based research experiences and optimize student success in the classroom.

Introduction to the Research Lab

Explore the basics of Wolbachia biology and build foundational skills for success in the research laboratory.

Lab 1: Arthropod Collection & Identification

Discover the spectacular diversity and abundance of arthropods and prepare specimens for DNA analysis.

Lab 2: DNA Extraction

Learn DNA extraction techniques to successfully isolate genomic DNA from both arthropods and Wolbachia.

Illustrated Protocol: QIAGEN (.docx)

Lab 3: PCR

Amplify DNA extracted from experimental and control arthropods using PCR, a diagnostic tool to discover microbes and barcode organisms.

Illustrated Protocol: Wolbachia (.docx)
Illustrated Protocol: Arthropod (.docx)
Illustrated Protocol: Duplex (.docx)

Lab 4: Gel Electrophoresis

Determine the presence or absence of PCR products and quantify the size (length of the DNA molecule) of the product.

Illustrated Protocol: MiniOne (.docx)
Illustrated Protocol: miniPCR (.docx)

Lab 5: Bioinformatics

Master the basics of Sanger DNA sequencing and explore the NCBI database while utilizing BLAST.

Illustrated Protocol: DNA Subway (.docx)
Arthropod phylogeny file (.fasta)
Wolbachia phylogeny file (.fasta)

Journal Club

Review scientific articles using guided questions, graphical abstracts, and supplementary activities.

Answer Keys

Answer keys to each of the Project Guides are available for educators only. Contact us for password access.

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