UP students set new Guinness record on DNA isolation at IISF

Lucknow, Oct 7: A Guinness world record was created here by the maximum number of students conducting a DNA isolation experiment at the ongoing India International Science Festival (IISF-2018).

The Guinness Book representative from the United Kingdom handed over the certificate to Vijnana Bharti and Ministry of Science and Technology for the isolation of DNA from banana by 550 students in the age groups of 13-17 years. The previous record was of 302 students at Seattle in USA.

Renu Swaroop, Secretary of the Biotechnology department, confirmed here on Sunday about the Guinness record and claimed that the experiment was an aim to generate excitement about science among the students.

Another senior official from the Biotechnology department said that the entire protocol was taken care of before the certificate was awarded.
The experiment was carried out from 9:30 am to 12 noon on Saturday at the G D Goenka Public School here in the state capital. It was supposed to last 90 minutes, but the students completed the experiment in an hour and one minute.

As many as 57 bananas were used to make slices weighing 10-12 gm. The event was inaugurated by SK Barik, Director of the National Botanical Research Institute (NBRI).

Dr Barik said it is a great achievement as the record now belongs to India."We were present there to provide encouragement to the students," he said.

The students sat under a shed-like area to isolate the DNA, which was carried out by mashing the banana first and adding a buffer solution, which breaks the cell, after which ethanol is added, causing the DNA cluster to emerge.

The students were excited to be a part of the world record.