TEACHER EDITION
How Do Siamese Cats Get Their Coat Coloration?
© Amber Todd, Ph.D.
image: https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/f/fa/Female_siamese_cat.jpg TEACHER EDITION TEACHER EDITION
Lesson Set: How Do Siamese Cats Get Their Coat Coloration?
OVERVIEW Purpose The purpose of these lessons are for students to further explore protein structure and function and to learn how proteins lead to observable traits.
Sequencing This lesson set is designed to be taught prior to the introduction of the central dogma (DNA -> RNA -> protein) and the details of transcription and translation.
This lesson set is designed to be taught after the introduction of protein functions and cellular specialization. Students should know some examples of protein functions, that proteins do the work of the cell, that somatic cells in our body contain the same DNA, and that specialized cells express different genes to create different proteins specific for the function of the specialized cell.
Description This learning set is centered around the Driving Question (DQ) “How do Siamese cats get their coat coloration?” Students will use this example to see how proteins can lead to observable traits. In the first lesson, Students will use paper models to show how enzyme structure in the active site relates to function. Students will use computer models in the second activity to show how proteins interact with other molecules in 3D. In the third activity, Students will experiment with Jell-O and fruit juices to show enzymes in action. In the fourth activity, Students will look at different molecular motor proteins and learn how their structure and function relate. In the fifth activity, Students explore how proteins synthesize melanin and pigments lead to observable traits. At the end of this learning set, students will be able to explain how the enzyme tyrosinase causes the coat coloration of Siamese cats.
NGSS Standards & Performance Expectations • HS-LS1 From Molecules to Organisms: Structures and Processes • HS-LS1-1. Construct an explanation based on evidence for how the structure of DNA determines the structure of proteins which carry out the essential functions of life through systems of specialized cells. • HS-LS3 Heredity: Inheritance and Variation of Traits • HS-LS3-1. Heredity: Ask questions to clarify relationships about the role of DNA and chromosomes in coding the instructions for characteristic traits passed from parents to offspring
NGSS Science and Engineering Practices (SEP) • Developing and Using Models • Develop and use a model based on evidence to illustrate the relationship between systems or between components of a system. (HS-LS1-2) • Initial models - day 1, revised models - day 5, final models - day 7 • Constructing Explanations and Designing Solutions