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Milk: How Sweet Is It?

Image from the activity

Topic

  • Biochemistry & Molecular Biology
  • Enzymes & Reactions
  • Anatomy & Physiology
  • Metabolism & Nutrition
  • Math & Computational Skills
  • Data Analysis

Resource Type

  • Activities
  • Labs & Demos

Level

High School — GeneralHigh School — AP/IB
Used In
1 BioInteractive Playlists
Saved By
29 Users
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View in Spanish

Description

In this activity, students simulate a lactose tolerance test, similar to the one shown in the short film The Making of the Fittest: Got Lactase? The Co-evolution of Genes and Culture, to determine which samples contain the lactase enzyme.

To simulate measuring glucose in patient blood samples, students combine synthetically manufactured “patient intestinal fluid samples,” made of either water or a lactase solution, with milk, and then measure the amount of glucose produced in the solutions over time. Students work in pairs to collect, analyze, and graph their data to determine which “patients” are lactase persistent (lactose tolerant) and lactase non-persistent (lactose intolerant).

The “Resource Google Folder” link directs to a Google Drive folder of resource documents in the Google Docs format. Not all downloadable documents for the resource may be available in this format. The Google Drive folder is set as “View Only”; to save a copy of a document in this folder to your Google Drive, open that document, then select File → “Make a copy.” These documents can be copied, modified, and distributed online following the Terms of Use listed in the “Details” section below, including crediting BioInteractive.

Student Learning Targets

  • Plan the steps in an experimental procedure, including controls.
  • Test for the presence of glucose in a sample using glucose test strips.
  • Collect, analyze, graph, and interpret data to draw a conclusion.
     

Estimated Time

One to two 50-minute class periods.

Key Terms

allergy, disaccharide, enzyme, galactose, glucose, intolerance, lactase, lactose, monosaccharide, persistence

Terms of Use

The resource is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution-NonCommercial-ShareAlike 4.0 International license. No rights are granted to use HHMI’s or BioInteractive’s names or logos independent from this Resource or in any derivative works.

Version History

Date Published 06.14.11

NGSS (2013)

HS-LS1-6; SEP3, SEP4, SEP6

AP Biology (2019)

ENE-1.D, ENE-1.G; SP3, SP4, SP6

IB Biology (2016)

2.5, 6.1

Common Core (2010)

ELA.RST.9–12.3, ELA.RST.9–12.7, ELA.WHST.9–12.1
Math.S-ID.1; MP2, MP4, MP6

Vision and Change (2009)

CC2, CC4; DP1, DP2

Materials

Resource Google Folder (Link)
Teacher Materials (PDF) 329 KB
Student Handout (PDF) 395 KB
Teacher Materials - Español (PDF) 285 KB
Student Handout - Español (PDF) 369 KB

Additional Materials

  • plastic medicine cups
  • one permanent marker
  • glucose reagent test strips
  • glucose color chart
  • plastic stirring rods or coffee stir sticks
  • graduated cylinder (or medicine cups with millimeter markings)
  • timer, clock, watch
  • paper towels
  • colored pencils (optional)
  • graph paper (optional)
  • large beakers or containers with a pouring spout (100-mL volume or more)
  • smaller beakers or containers with a pouring spout (35-mL volume or more)
  • graduated cylinder (50 mL or larger)
  • kitchen sieve or funnel
  • box of lactase capsules or Lactaid caplets
  • coffee filter
  • mortar and pestle (optional)
  • tap water
     

Use This Resource With

Video Resource
The Making of the Fittest: Got Lactase? The Co-evolution of Genes and Culture

Explore Related Content

Other Resources About Lactase

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Click & Learn
Recent Adaptations in Humans
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Click & Learn
Regulation of the Lactase Gene
Screen shot of the quiz
Interactive Videos
Interactive Assessment for Got Lactase? The Co-evolution of Genes and Culture
Portion of the main image
Data Points
Spread of a Lactase-Persistence Allele
Title screen of the film
Film Activities
Activity for Got Lactase? The Co-evolution of Genes and Culture
Photo of a cow drinking milk from a bottle
Short Films
The Making of the Fittest: Got Lactase? The Co-evolution of Genes and Culture
Image from the activity
Case Studies
Lactase Persistence: Evidence for Selection
Image of lactase cleaving sugars
Animations
Lactose Digestion in Infants
Image of a glass of milk with a smiley face superimposed
Animations
Natural Selection for Lactose Tolerance
Image from the activity
Lessons
Pedigrees and the Inheritance of Lactose Intolerance
Photo of a cat being given a bowl of milk
Lessons
Lactose Intolerance: Fact or Fiction
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Lessons
Blood Glucose Data Analysis

Other Related Resources

Showing of
Image of lactase cleaving sugars
Animations
Lactose Digestion in Infants
Image from the activity
Lessons
Blood Glucose Data Analysis
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Click & Learn
Molecular Structure of Fat
Image from the interactive
Click & Learn
How The Body Uses Fat
Computer image of fat next to muscle cell
Animations
The Fate of Fat
Computer image of cell growth from the video
Animations
Cancer and Cell Fate in the Intestinal Epithelium
Computer illustration of a fat cell
Animations
PPAR-gamma Activation in the Fat Cell
Photo of a cat being given a bowl of milk
Lessons
Lactose Intolerance: Fact or Fiction
Graph of amylase copy number and diet
Data Points
Amylase Copy Number and Diet
Photo of the paper model in action
Labs & Demos
Building a Paper Model of CRISPR-Cas9

This Resource Appears in the Following Playlists

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hhmi-card
Teaching Genetics and Molecular Biology Using Lactose Intolerance
Teaching Genetics and Molecular Biology Using Lactose Intolerance
7 Resources
By: BioInteractive
HHMI BioInteractive
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