Egg Macromolecules Lab Conclusion

In this lab we asked the question “can macromolecules be identified in an egg cell?” We found that macromolecules can be identified in egg cells by using special indicators. We used benedict’s solution, iodine, Sudan III, and sodium hydroxide to identify macromolecules in the egg cell. We found that the egg yolk had proteins, the egg membrane had polysaccharides, and the egg whites had lipids. When we added sodium hydroxide to the yolk, the color turned a light purple. The egg yolk had many proteins present because the color changed from yellow to a light purple color. In egg yolk, there is lots of protein because the chick needs a lot of energy to develop its tissues and organs. We rated the quantity of proteins present in the egg yolk a seven out of ten. When we added iodine to the egg membrane, we noticed that it turned to a very dark yellow then to an almost brown color. We rated the quantity of the polysaccharides present a six out of ten. Polysaccharides would be present in the egg membrane because polysaccharides are in the cell membrane, they are actually the carbohydrate chains. Lastly, we found that the egg whites contained lipids. We added Sudan III to the whites and we saw the color change from a whitish pinkish to a light orange. We rated the quantity of lipids present a five out of ten. There would be lipids present in the egg whites because it needs a lot of energy for growth and development. This data supports our claim because we had the correct color changes and there are clear reasons why the macromolecules would be present in the specific parts of the egg.

While our hypothesis was supported by our data, there could have been errors due to the different parts of the egg not being completely separated from each other and the amount of indicators put into each test tube. If the yolk, membrane, and whites were not separated perfectly, then some of them could have tested positive for macromolecules when in reality they were just different parts of the egg that were testing positive. The amount of indicators put into each test tube were also very important roles in getting the most accurate data. The amount of indicators put into each test tube differed from one another because one person could have accidentally put five drops of Sudan III instead of three or maybe they could have put bigger drops of the indicator in. Due to these errors, in future experiments I would recommend separating the yolk, membrane, and whites perfectly and having one person put the indicator into the test tubes to make sure they are all the same amount.

This lab was done to demonstrate which parts of the egg contained which macromolecules. From this lab I learned that yolk has lots of protein, whites have lipids, and the membrane contains polysaccharides. This helps me understand the concept of cells and their jobs because it showed which parts of the egg had which macromolecules and why they had those specific macromolecules to help carry out their job. Based on my experience from this lab I could apply this to another situation by using my knowledge to tell athletes which part of an egg to eat if they, for example, want more proteins or lipids in their diet.