Author: Whittni O’Brien_________________________________________________________________ Names of Group Members: Myrna Castro and Abigail Curtis- Heilmann___________________________ _____________________________________________________________________________________ Experiment #: _3__ Title: _Asian Ginseng and Yeast Bubbles Produced ___________________________________________________________________________ INTRODUCTION Yeast is a microscopic fungus that reproduces by binary fission (budding). Yeast feeds on sugar and uses a fermenting process to produce carbon dioxide and alcohol. The bubbles we saw for this experiment were carbon dioxide bubbles. Asian Ginseng is used to treat diabetic patients. Since diabetics have problems with blood …show more content…
Baker’s Yeast) into 20 separate transparent glass test tubes using a 3mL pipet. With a timer, we added 2 mL of sugar water into all 20 test tubes using a fresh pipet. We inverted each test tube twice to ensure an equal mixture. In 10 of test tubes, we added 2 mL of Asian Ginseng with a new pipet. We inverted the experimental group again for a proper mixture of components. After 20 minutes, we returned to measure our results (height of bubbles) using a centimeter ruler. The heights were measured from the meniscus of the yeast to the middle of the bubble pile in each test …show more content…
A biological explanation for this is that the Asian Ginseng prevented the yeast cells from in taking in the full amount of sugar. Therefore, the yeast was not able to ferment as much sugar which is why we did not see as many waste products in the experimental group. A study done on diabetics that did not receive insulin treatment was found to reduce blood sugar levels and help patients’ lose weight (Sotaniem). I believe our results are similar in the aspect that Asian Ginseng is effective in reducing sugar levels in living organisms. If this experiment was repeated, I suggest that a larger experimental group is used. It would be interesting to see what the optimal concentration of Asian Ginseng would be to eliminate any bubbles at all would be. When pouring the sugar into the yeast, I recommend using more than two lab assistants for an even more precise reaction