Candy Electrophoresis Lab

1. When we analyzed the results, all of our test dyes matched the four reference dyes except for one. When we extracted the dye from the orange skittle, it didn't match any of the reference dyes in both color and distance traveled. It almost seemed to split into red and yellow, except that since they weren't fully split and were still partially combined, the didn't quite match the red reference die or the yellow reference dye.

2. I think that betanin, the beetroot red, and citrus red 2 will likely match or at least be pretty similar to the red 40 reference dye. However, I think that betanin will be slightly darker and citrus might be a bit lighter.

3. These dog food manufacturers likely put colorful dyes in dog to make it more attractive to the consumer.

4. One reason why artificial dyes might be more preferable than natural dyes is the fact that artificial dyes can be mass produced. This makes it a lot easier to make and makes it a lot more mainstream.

5. The size and time it travels.

6. The negatively charged end (the anode) attracts the dyes and causes them to start moving through the holes towards the end of the gel.

7. The component that causes the molecules to separate by size is the fact that there are holes within the gel. Larger molecules move a lot slower through the holes while smaller molecules move quick and easy through them.

8. The molecule(s) with weight of 600 daltons will go the furthest, then followed by 1000 daltons, 2000 daltons, and 5000 daltons will travel the least distance.

In this lab, we asked the question: How can we use electrophoresis to identify the dyes in candy? We found that we were able to do so by comparing the distance traveled by our candy dyes to that of the reference dyes. The dye from the red skittle matched red 40, the dye from the green skittle successfully separated into yellow and blue, and matched the yellow and blue reference dyes, and so did the dye from the yellow skittle. However, the orange skittle wasn't able to completely split into red and yellow, so it ended up halfway between the two reference dyes for red and yellow. This supports our hypothesis because we thought that it would indeed be possible to identify the dyes used in the candies, and we were right.

While our hypothesis was supported by our data, there could have been possible errors due to the fact that we were at an assembly while we ran our gel. This could have caused the dyes to move without supervision, and anything could have happened to alter the results and we wouldn't have known about it. Also, when we used the micropipet to transfer the reference dyes and our candy dyes into the wells, there were a couple of times where we missed some dye, so that could've also affected the results by changing the amount of dye that was actually running through the gel. Due to these errors largely being affected by not having enough time, I suggest that in the future, this lab be split into two days: one for preparing the dyes and the second day for running them.

This lab was done to demonstrate how electrophoresis could be used to identify different dyes. This lab helps me better understand the concept of how similar molecules will travel similar distances through the gel because of their similar size. Based on what I learned in this lab, I think I can probably do gel electrophoresis for DNA as well.