Investigations in post-16 biology

These reliable practicals from SAPs allow students to practice a range of skills, such as microscopy skills, serial dilutions, plotting and using standard curves and developing mathematical skills.  These investigations were designed for students following a Scottish Highers course but they are equally useful for other post-16 courses in biology. Some could even be adapted for secondary students of a younger age.

The investigations include:

• Investigating the hormone auxin (IAA), a plant growth regulator
• Fruit juice production and enzyme recovery
• What determines the number of spines on a holly leaf?
• The effect of phosphate on the enzyme phosphatase
• Stomatal opening and closing in commelina communis
• ​The response of leaf discs to green light
• The effects of IAA on root growth
• Competitive and non-competitive enzyme inhibition
• Estimating the glucose concentration of a solution
• The effects of mineral concentrations on plant growth
• Investigating potato cyst nematodes
• Examining mycorrhizae
• Protoplast isolation
• Investigation enzymes: microscale investigations with catalase
• Investigating enzymes: inhibition of catechol oxidase in bananas
• Investigating enzymes: phosphatase enzymes in plants
• Investigations into eutrophication