Today is the fourth and final day of working in the computer lab on the Chromosome Project.  Please download and complete the Day 4 Activity Log.  Students who complete the project before the end of the class period should share their expertise with classmates who would benefit from some additional help.  Remember, the purpose of this project is for each student to identify one disease caused by one gene on one chromosome.  Students are gaining a vast array of skills, including:

• Using NCBI to research chromosomes, genes, and proteins;
• Effective using the Internet searches research human diseases or conditions caused by inappropriate gene expression;
• Applying project management skills to break down a large project into smaller units (the daily activity logs);
• Working with Microsoft Word and PowerPoint to document and share learning;
• Self-sufficiency by visiting the class website daily, and then reading and following complex written instructions;
• Teamwork by sharing learning strategies with classmates working through similar learning challenges.

I am very proud of the work I have seen students accomplish over three short days.  Students have been presented with a variety of scheduling challenges, and several have also dealt with technological challenges.  I am impressed with the perseverance of my students and look forward to seeing their finished projects.

**Update: Because of the continued technology challenges, the final PowerPoint project is now worth 50 points, with additional credit awarded for presentations (+10 extra credit) and group participation (+10 extra credit) during presentations.  The reflection assignment (+10) was separately graded as well.

After two days in the computer lab, students should have compiled enough information for their Chromosome Project to complete page 1 of the PowerPoint template (goal #1).  Next, download and complete the Day 3 Activity Log.  The major focus of today is to identify credible scientific resources and find the information necessary to complete slides 2 and 3 of the PowerPoint.

• Symptoms and characteristics of the disease/condition:
  • How does someone know they have the disease/condition?
  • What body systems are affected and how?
  • What tests are used to detect the disease/condition?
• Who is affected?  Who is at risk for having the disease/condition
• Outlook or quality of life:
  • What happens if the disease/condition goes untreated?
  • What treatment options are currently available?
  • How does treatment affect the disease/condition?
  • What treatment options may be available in the future?

Project scoring update: Many students were unable to locate their Day 1 Activity Log files, suggesting a problem with the student drives.  Out of fairness, the grading rubric will be updated as follows:

• Minimum of 3 Daily Logs: 10 points per log (30 points total)
• PowerPoint slides (50 points total)
• Reflection (10 points)
• Audience participation during presentations (10 points)
• Presentation of PowerPoint (10 points of extra credit)

Students should download and complete the Day 2 Activity Log to document progress on the chromosome project, saving it to their student drive.  Please review the project description and grading rubric by visiting last Thursday’s post.

Ready to research a specific gene?  Head over to the NCBI Human Genome Resources page and enter your gene name into the “Find a Gene” box on the left panel.  Be sure to select “homo sapiens” in the pull-down box.  When the search completes, click on your gene name (typically the first gene on the list) and browse through the entry.  There is a ton of information provided!  The length of the gene can be found by hovering your mouse over the top green line under the “genomic regions, transcripts, and products” and looking for the number after the word “length.”  The length of the amino acid sequence can be found by clicking on the word “protein” on the right hand side of the page under Related Information.  Browse the entries for the full-length protein and note the number of amino acids in the protein.  The full-length protein can be challenging to find: look for an entry that does not include words like truncated, isoform, predicted, synthetic construct, or unnamed protein product.