The University of Mississippi, Department of Biology Freshman Laboratory Program (FLP) includes separate laboratory sequences for first year biology mayors (over 500 students per year) and students not majoring in a science who must meet core curriculum requirements in science (approximately 1400 students per year). Approximately 70% of non-science graduates from the University fulfill their basic science requirement in the biology FLP. The FLP is faced with the dual challenge of preparing science majors for upper level work in biology while providing nonscience majors a basis of relevance and the appropriate intellectual tools for the interpretation of scientific information as it affects social issues and everyday life. Nowhere is this challenge more acute and the outcome of efforts to meet the challenge more important than with respect to student understanding of the molecular basis of genetic variation. DNA fingerprinting and other techniques of DNA analysis are routinely used in many subfields of biology. The importance of molecular genetics to human health and the application of DNA analysis in forensics is widely appreciated by most students. However, because of resource limitations, the coverage of DNA structure and function in the FLP is restricted to demonstrations and computer simulations. In this protect, we will implement DNA fingerprinting exercises into all freshman laboratories. The exercise will involve the genetic analysis of three freshwater fish species (two congeners and one from a closely related genus) using a PCR-based technique. The instruments to be purchased for the exercises will be used by students under supervision of the PI's and Graduate Teaching Assistants trained by faculty. We expect the program to (1) enhance student's understanding of the structure and function of DNA (2) provide a working knowledge of the important tools of contemporary genetic analysis, and (3) provide an understanding of the limitations and potential uses of molecular genetic informatio n.
