Electrophoresis essays

Electrophoresis essays magine a rape/ murder has just happened. The police go in to recover evidence. The only thing that can be found is a sample of DNA from a trace of blood on the victim. This DNA sample must be some how linked top the suspect. These DNA samples can be separated using gel electrophoresis. The number and position of bands formed on each lane of gel is the actual genetic "fingerprint" of that DNA sample. The characteristics of certain segments of DNA vary from person to person and form a highly individual, detectable "genetic fingerprint." This fingerprint is the most unique thing a person has, and therefore not two people have the same DNA sample. When the DNA sample form the crime scene and the DNA sample from the suspect are matched, then one can be sure that this is the right match. The suspect is guilty of the crime. Genetic fingerprinting by electrophoresis was only developed in the mid-1980s, genetic and has become a widely used courtroom tool. In 1988 the first person in the United States was executed based on DNA technology. Electrophoresis is a method that separates macromolecules whether it is nucleic acids or proteins, on the basis of size, electric charge, and other physical properties. The term electrophoresis describes the migration of charged particle under the influence of an electric field. Gel electrophoresis refers to the technique in which molecules are forced across a span of gel, motivated by an electrical current. Activated electrodes at either end of the gel provide the driving force. A molecule's properties determine how rapidly an electric field can move the molecule through a gelatinous medium. Many important biological molecules such as amino acids, peptides, proteins, nucleotides, and nucleic acids at any given pH, exist in solution as electrically charged species either as cations (+) or anions (-). Depending on the nature of the net charge, the charged particles will migrate either to the c...