Meiosis Lab Assignment
This assignment is worth 30% of the lab grade.
Due date: November 20, 2023.
Goal: To identify the different stages
of meiosis
1. (10 points) Prepare slides of cells
from rye anthers.
The procedure is described in MeiosisLabManual.pdf. The lab
instructor will demonstrate this procedure.
Once you have a good slide or slides, bring them to the
photomicroscope to capture images, which you can then upload for
further use.
2. (20 points) For each stage of meiosis listed below, create an
annotated image of one or more cells in that stage. In each
case, explain which features uniquely identify the stage of the
cell.
Hint: It is a good organizational practice to create a folder
to contain all files related to this lab eg. you might call it
"MeiosisLab".
Before trying to identify cells, you are strongly urged to
re-read Unit 3, Making
Sense of Meiosis. Knowing what to look for is in part
dependent on what is happening to the chromosomes at each stage.
Put another way, the appearance of the chromosomes is a direct
consequence of the physical forces acting upon them, in addition
to the changes taking place in chromosome structure in a given
phase.
1. Diplotene
or Diakinesis (only one is
required)
2. Metaphase
I
3. Anaphase
I
4. Metaphase II or Anaphase II (only one is required)
Hints:
- Edit your images using any drawing program you wish eg.
LibreOffice Draw, MS-Office Powerpoint.
- Feel free to zoom or crop the image to make it fit easily in
your report
- Indicate the cell from a given stage of mitosis using circles,
boxes, brackets, arrows, or whatever makes it clear which cell
you are referring to.
- Save your final image in PNG or JPG format. Then, insert your
image into the report under the appropriate subheading.
Report
Your results should be written using one of the following template
files:
These files contain places for pasting in screenshots, as part of
your report.
It is NOT acceptable to upload your images as separate files.
They must be inserted into the report.
Submitting
your assignment
- Make sure your report includes your name, student number and
UM email address.
- This file contains places for pasting in data, as part of your
report. It is NOT acceptable to upload your data as separate
files. They must be inserted into the report.
- Save your assignment report as a PDF file, and upload
it to the PLNT3140 UMLearn dropbox site in the Meiosis Lab
folder. Files in word processing formats (.doc, .docx, .rtf,
.odt) are NOT acceptable.
For TAs:
Here is a video showing how to dissect out spikes from rye
sheaths. You will see some spikes pulled out of the sheaths, and
then dropped into Farmers Fixative.
VIDEO (4:22)