Bio Med Final
Choose any 4 of the following vitamins/minerals and discuss the importance it serves in the body and why these should be part of one's daily diet. [2.2.2]
Calcium: strong bones Iron: transfers oxygen around body Vitamin A: good eyesight and immune function Vitamin C: growth, repairs body tissues
Describe how we experimentally performed calorimetry to determine the number of calories in a food sample. This should include any specific lab equipment used, measurements that were taken, and how those were ultimately used to calculate the number of calories. [2.2.4]
Calorimetry is the process of measuring the amount of heat released or absorbed in a chemical reaction. Use a calorimeter to measure change in energy as heat. Steps include (1) using a well known substance (water) (2) run reaction and let heat go out of or into water (3) measure water's change in temperature (4) heat into water = heat from reaction. Calculations: q=mc△t
What is an autopsy? Who performs autopsies? Why are they performed? Please also discuss the differences between the 4 "manners of death" and how this is different from a "cause of death". [1.3.1]
An autopsy is an examination of the body after death with the purpose of finding the cause of death. Autopsies are performed by pathologists and medical examiners. Manner of death is the circumstance that results in death (natural or unnatural), the 4 manners of death are natural, accident, suicide, and homicide. Cause of death is the official determination of conditions resulting in a person's death. Cause of death is more specific than the manner of death.
Describe at least 3 different methods currently available to help patients manage Diabetes. [2.3.4]
An insulin ump, which is connected to your body through a tube that releases insulin. An omni pod, which is a tubeless and waterproof insulin pump. A daily injection of insulin through syringe.
Clearly describe the evidence found at the Anna Garcia crime scene, and ultimately what was determined about each piece of evidence after having completed the Crime Scene Evidence Lab. [1.1.2 and 1.1.4]
An unknown substance was found at the crime scene, a very fine white powder. After experimenting, the substance was found to be aspirin. A pool of blood was also found at the crime scene, found to be type B. Both Anna and Alex Garcia have type B blood, so we do not know whose blood exactly it was. The hair strand found at the crime scene belonged to Anna, noted by the diameter of the medulla of the unknown hair matching the diameter of her sample. The fingerprint found at the crime scene belonged to Alex Garcia, identified by having the same ridge pattern, radial loop. Lastly, the curving on the soles of the shoe print found at the crime scene matched the soles of Anna Garcia.
This case is based around the mysterious death of Anna Garcia, our patient of interest. Please describe any details surrounding her death that we are aware of so far (NOT including anything related to Diabetes). For example ... How was she discovered? Who discovered her? When and where was the body found? What's her age / ethnicity? [1.1.1]
Anna was discovered to be dead through a phone call to the police by her next door neighbor, Doug Greene. Her body was found lying face down in her front entry hallway at 9:56am. She was 38 years old, 64 inches tall, hispanic.
Please use the analysis of Anna Garcia's stomach contents (the vomit you tested in our Food Testing Lab), the 2.2.1 Autopsy Report, and her Food Diary to explain any and all key details this provides us about her death. [2.2.1]
Anna's stomach contents contained glucose and starch, two things a diabetic should not be consuming a lot of. Autopsy reported blood glucose levels high. The food diary shows us that she ate too much glucose and starch for a diabetic.
Describe experimentally, how one can determine if a food sample contains carbohydrates, starch, lipids, and proteins. For full credit, you must briefly describe the procedure for each biomacromolecule and the expected results for each test. [2.2.1]
Carbs: obtain a food sample, drops of Benedict's solution, heat up, change from light blue to orange Starch: obtain food sample, drops of Iodine, should change from yellow to black Lipids: obtain food sample, put on brown paper, hold up to light, should be translucent Protein: obtain food sample, drops of Biuret solution, turn from clear to purple
What are catalysts and enzymes? What role do they serve? How do they accomplish this? Explain what factors might affect the activity of an enzyme in the human body, and how maintaining homeostasis is vital to one's survival. [2.2.3 Notes]
Catalysts speed up the rate of chemical reactions by lowering the activation energy. An enzyme is a protein catalyst. Most enzymes operate best under specific conditions: pH levels and temperature.
Briefly describe the procedure we followed in extracting DNA from various fruits and our saliva. Be sure to explain the purpose of each substance we used in the experiment serves in our overall goal of extracting the DNA. [1.2.2]
Fruit in bag → mash → add extraction buffer *soap which dissolves membrane, water, and salt which separates DNA strands* → filter out bits → add chilled alcohol *causes DNA to separate and rise* Swish salt solution in mouth *extracts cells* → spit into cup → pour into detergent solution *dissolves cell membrane* → gently rock back and forth for 2 minutes → add chilled alcohol *causes DNA to separate and rise*
Demonstrate your understanding of the Glaister Equation by devising your own example of an internal body temperature taken, and how that could be used to approximate a victim's time of death. SHOW ALL WORK and INCLUDE UNITS! [1.1.5]
Glaister equation: 98.4 - measured rectal temp / 1.5 = approximate hours since death. Subtract hours since death from time found dead.
What is Glucose Tolerance Testing? How is it performed in the "real world", and how did we simulate that in our Glucose Tolerance Testing Lab? I need you to specifically discuss and analyze the results obtained for Anna Garcia (both glucose and insulin). [2.1.1]
Glucose tolerance the body's ability to metabolize glucose. This testing is a process to determine if someone has diabetes. The doctor will inject glucose into the person's bloodstream and monitor the blood glucose levels over a period of time. Anna's glucose levels remained high, meaning there was no insulin to dispute the glucose. Therefore, Anna has type 1 diabetes.
What is HIPAA? What are some of the major rules health professionals must follow under HIPAA? Describe a SPECIFIC example in which HIPAA was violated and EXPLAIN why it was violated. [1.3.2]
HIPAA is a comprehensive set of standards and practices designed to give patients specific rights regarding their personal health information. Major rules include confidentiality of patient health info. If two doctors are openly conversing about a shared patient in an elevator with other people present, they are violating HIPAA by not making an effort to keep the patient's information a secret.
Introducing students to the wide range of biomedical careers is one of the focuses of this class. Please choose ANY 3 careers that we have discussed so far (so 2nd semester presentations do not count), and describe what the career professional does, and the pros/cons of that profession. [1.1.3]
Nutritionist: A nutritionist counsels patients on nutrition issues, and helps develop meal and nutrition plans tailored to each individual patient. Pros: Not a lot of schooling required, work in hospitals or clinics, face to face/hands on interactions. Cons: not paid very well, sometimes cannot help patient, mentally exhausting. Food Scientist: Conducts research/experiments to improve productivity and sustainability of field crops. Pros: hands on, not behind desk job, unique, pays ok. Cons: lots of schooling, not helping people first hand. Physical Therapist: Educates patients on their conditions and create recovery plans involving exercise to help feel better. Pros: good pay, not a lot of schooling, hands on/first hand helping others. Cons: physical and mental exhaustion
Why is it unhealthy for anyone to be getting an excessive amount of saturated fats, transfats, and cholesterol in his/her diet? Why might it be especially bad for a Type II diabetic to be eating a lot of fatty foods and foods high in carbohydrates? [2.2.2]
The excess fat builds up in the veins and clogs arteries, leading to heart problems and possibly death by stroke because type 2 diabetics cannot break down fats and cholesterol as well as normal people.
Explain the pathophysiology behind Diabetes. How is it caused? What is the difference between Type I and Type II? Your response should include: glucose transport proteins, cell membrane, glucose, blood, cell, insulin, and insulin receptors [2.1.2]
Type 1 diabetes occurs when the pancreas either does not produce any insulin or produces too little. Type 2 is when the body does not respond appropriately to insulin, a condition called "insulin resistance". Type 1 often appears during childhood, and is suspected to be caused by a combination of genetic and environmental factors. Being overweight is strongly linked to the development of type 2 diabetes, and can we controlled by watching weight, diet, and exercising regularly.
Briefly describe the procedure we followed and the analysis obtained from our Time of Death Lab to show the relationship between ambient (surrounding) temperature and the rate at which a body cools. You should, for example, mention what was used to represent the dead body and the surrounding temperature. [1.1.5]
We put a test tube of sodium polyacrylate and 37 degree water(representing the dead body) into 3 different water baths, 0 degrees, room temperature, and 50 degrees(surrounding temp). We measured the change in temperature over 20 minutes. We found that the body will adapt its temp according to the temp of the surrounding area. The rate of cooling is faster if the surrounding temp is more drastic compared to the body's temp.
Explain how the insulin-glucagon feedback loop helps regulate blood glucose (blood sugar) in the body. Is this an example of positive or negative feedback, and how do you know? [2.1.3]
When there is too much glucose in the blood, the pancreas releases insulin into the bloodstream to counteract the glucose and maintain homeostasis. When there is too little glucose in the bloodstream, the pancreas will release glucagon, which will help raise the glucose levels toward homeostasis. This is an example of a negative feedback loop, which occur in biology when the product of a reaction leads to a decrease in that reaction. Therefore a negative feedback loop brings a system closer to a target of stability or homeostasis.
What's the difference between hyperglycemia and hypoglycemia? Apply the concept of osmosis to explain what exactly is occurring in the cells/bloodstream of hyper- and hypoglycemic patients, as well as the side effects each of these would cause. [2.3.2]
Hyperglycemia is when blood glucose levels are too high. To maintain homeostasis, water moves from inside cells into the bloodstream, causing cells to shrivel up. Side effects include: Increased thirst, headaches, trouble concentrating, blurred vision, frequent peeing, fatigue (weak, tired feeling), weight loss, blood sugar more than 180 mg/dL. Hypoglycemia is when blood glucose levels are too low. To maintain homeostasis water from the bloodstream will travel into the cell, causing them to burst. Side effects include: nervousness, dizziness, trembling, sweating, hunger, weakness, and palpitations. Severe cases may lead to seizures and loss of consciousness.
Explain how your group designed an experiment to test the relationship between the height at which blood drops and the diameter of the blood droplet. Please also discuss how the graphs you generated for this activity were used to analyze the blood spatter from Anna Garcia's crime scene. What did the analysis indicate about her death? [1.1.6]
Our group tested the relationship between height and diameter of the blood drop by choosing 4 different heights, 50cm, 100cm, 150cm, and 200cm. We used meter sticks to measure the heights, and dropped fake blood, 1 drop from a pipette, 3 different times, and we graphed the averages of the diameters. Our results proved that the higher the blood was dropped from, the bigger the diameter of the spatter will be. We compared the diameter of Anna's blood drops to our graph and were able to conclude that Anna bled from her shoulder area, possibly by hitting the table that was found overturned at the crime scene.
How are restriction enzymes and gel electrophoresis used to separate DNA into fragments? You do NOT need to go into the procedure of how it would be performed in a lab, but you should explain conceptually how gel electrophoresis works. What did the results of our class activity show/prove in relation to the case of Anna Garcia? [1.2.3]
Restriction enzymes act as molecular scissors that cut DNA at specific locations. Each individual's DNA is different, so fragments vary in size and separation locations. These fragments can be put into gel electrophoresis and an electric field will pull them across the gel. DNA is negatively charged, so the fragments will move through the gel from the negative side to the positive side, but distance and speeds will vary due to different sizes. The DNA found at the crime scene belonged to Anna.
Choose ANY 3 human body systems, and discuss the major organs and functions of each. [1.3.1]
Skeletal system: bones and joints. Protects and supports the body's organs, provides muscle framework, stores minerals. Integumentary system: hair, skin, nails. Forms the body's external covering, protects deeper tissue from injury, regulates body temp Cardiovascular system: heart, blood vessels. Pumps blood around body, transports oxygen, carbon dioxide, nutrients, and waste
