Biology survey courses in college sometimes turn on students to new careers in the health and life sciences. And survey courses in biology in college never have to be dull. Modern Biology Inc. produces complete kits — reagents, test materials, and teaching guides — every intro biology instructor can use to keep college students engaged.
Here are four examples of cool and engaging experiments:

1. Gel Electrophoresis
Many introductory biology students have not learned the concept of what proteins are, or how they might be observed and compared, until they participate in a lab exercise like our EXP-101 Electrophoretic Separation of Proteins. In this experiment, students are not just watching a demonstration of how scientists identify proteins. They will have a hands-on experience with electrophoresis in the lab in which they can compare the migration of a control against the migration of an experimental protein across a charged agarose gel.

2. Sickle Cell Anemia
Just about all college biology students will have some knowledge of sickle cell disease. Most just haven’t dug deeper into learning about heterozygous sickle cell trait, or how it’s possible to test for the genes that cause it — until they do actual blood testing for sickle cell genes in our EXP 102: Genetics and Sickle Cell Anemia. In this experiment, students will first study the differences in electrophoretic dispersal of normal hemoglobin and hemoglobin from a person who has sickle cell trait. Then they can *optionally* test their own blood for sickle cell genes.

hbss - sickle cell

3. Cell Respiration
There’s more to experimental biology than electrophoresis, of course. In B4-1: Effects of Temperature on Cell Respiration, your students will first rethink their understanding of how animals breathe in oxygen and breathe out carbon dioxide, but plants must somehow be oxygen producers 24/7. In this experiment, your students will measure oxygen consumption and hydrogen liberation of germinating seedlings with respirometers at varying temperature levels. They will use dyes to create a visual, analog measurement of respiration in plants for graphic confirmation or disconfirmation of their hypotheses about the nature of plant respiration in seedlings.

4. Cell Surface Receptors
In EXP 702: Analysis of a Cell Surface Receptor, your students will learn about their own cell surface receptors from a buccal swab. They will study multiple sites for concanavalin A binding and the hemagglutination reaction in their own cells.

Great Experiments and Supplies for Your Students

Modern Biology’s products are always fully engaged experiments, never demonstrations. Our reagents and test solutions are the real deal.

Modern Biology ensures that our products are non-toxic and safe for student use. Student safety is paramount in every product we create.

Modern Biology takes the hassle out of sourcing reagents and test materials. Our experiments are complete with reagents, disposable labware and digital instructions. Modern Biology has tailored our experiments so that the same equipment can be used with either our Protein or DNA labs.

Modern Biology empowers you to integrate the scientific method into what can often become a descriptive course. We take care of your ordering and inventory tasks for over 20 hours of laboratory instruction, while pricing our products to fit public school budgets.

Over 500,000 students have learned biology with the help of Modern Biology products. We want to show you why thousands of teachers trust Modern Biology.