Background Information

Activities

General Outline

  1. General discussion of the cell cycle and the idea of checkpoints
    1. Discuss the requirements of checkpoints and what is being checked
    2. Discuss the outcome of bypassing checkpoints, ie. cancers
    3. Review the basic structure of eukaryotic chromosomes
      1. Linear segments
      2. Centromeres, p arm and q arm
      3. Chromatids versus chromosomes
  2. Describe the phases of mitosis and definition of NUCLEAR division often accompanied by CYTOKINESIS
  3. Cover the concept of binary fission (Structure and Function, Information Flow, Systems, Evolution)
    1. Compare/contrast binary fission and mitosis/cytokinesis in eukaryotes
    2. Review endosymbiotic prokaryotes and role of binary fission in replication
  4. Engage students in discussion of meiosis
    1. 1n versus 2n and homologous chromosomes
    2. The role of reductional division
    3. Emphasize synapsis, crossing-over/recombination
    4. The role of fertilization and the chromosome counting
    5. Do not go through the comparison (mitosis/meiosis) activity at this time
    6. You may choose to briefly review some features of gametogenesis, though this section is intentionally underdeveloped at this time
  5. H5P manipulatives for student review on personal devices. Students may benefit in a self-test with these manipulatives prior to proceeding through the duration of cell cycle activity.
    1. Flash cards to test knowledge of mitosis phases https://h5p.org/node/201880
    2. Drag to reorder the sequence of mitosis phases https://h5p.org/node/202866
  6. Perform the Estimating Duration of Cell Cycle Activity
    1. A quick review and identification exercise can be performed using
      https://bio.rutgers.edu/~gb101/lab2_mitosis/section1_frames.html
    2. The onion root tip slides are available for microscopic investigation
    3. If time is short, you are provided with color print outs of the slides that can be handed to the groups to work from
    4. You may retrieve the data from groups and average them across the class
  7. Using Physical Manipulatives to Model Mitosis/Meiosis (Simulation/Modeling, Visual Communication)
    1. Students are very hands-on and this forces them to demonstrate to you and to each other the chromatid/chromosome count at each stage with the documentation in their own cell phone photographs
    2. This is the time to have the students summarize the comparison of mitosis/meiosis as a study guidelines
  8. H5P Review about comparing mitosis/meiosis
  9. Chromosomes and karyotypes (Life-long Learning, Science & Society, Evolution)
    1. Discuss chromosomal aberrations and nondisjunction
    2. A discussion of the Robertsonian translocation event that has led to human chromosome 2 should be discussed as a fusion of the Great Ape Chromosomes 2p and 2q with vestigial centromere (https://github.com/jeremyseto/biooer/
      blob/master/figures/molecular/evolution/comparative-karyogram.png?raw=true      )
    3. Discuss aneuploid/polyploid tolerance in other species (plants and edible fruit generation)

Curricular Notes

This unit covers the NSF Vision & Change Core Competencies:

  1. Simulation/Modeling
  2. (Visual) Communication
  3. Science & Society

This unit covers the NSF Vision & Change Core Concepts:

  1. Evolution : review of endosymbiosis, speciation from aneuploid/polyploid tolerance, origin of human chromosome 2 from Robertsonian translocation
  2. Structure and Function: chromosome structure in eukaryotes versus prokaryotes,
    chromatin structure & components
  3. Information Flow: DNA replication, gametogenesis, reductional division & fertilization
  4. Systems: integration into reproduction (sexual/asexual/repair & growth)

This unit covers additional General Education Competency:

  1. Life-long Learning

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