The Rosalin Franklin
The laboratory
Biology laboratory
Equipment quantity
1. Ordinary test tubes
2. Boiling tubes (heat resistant)
3. Open flame Test tubes (heat
resistant
*All test tubes should have their
holders and rackers or should be
provided separately
4. Bungs to fit test tubes/ boiling
tubes
5. Bungs with delivery tubes to fit
test tubes/ boiling tubes
6. Thermostatically controlled
waterbath
7. Burnsen burner
8. Mercury or coloured alcohol
thermometers
9. Measuring cylinders ( 10, 50, 100
and 1000 ml)
10. Syringes (2, 5 and 10 ml)
11. Plastic or rubber tubing to fit
syringes
12. Teat pipettes (plastic or glass)
13. Beakers ( 10, 50, 100, 250, 500,
and 1000 ml)
14. Tripod stands and gauzes
15. Filter funnels and filter paper
16. Petri dishes (plastic) or shallow
containers to hold small volumes
(e.g. 20 cm3)
17. White tiles or other suitable
surfaces on which to cut
18. Spotting tile or similar with space
for 12 separate drops
19. Glass slides and coverslips
20. Conical flasks
21. Clamp (retort) stands and
bosses
22. Visking (dialysis) tubing or
suitable alternative
23. Capillary tubing
24. Soda glass tubing
25. Paper towelling or tissue
26. Cotton wool
27. Solid glass rods
28. spatulas
29. Black paper/aluminium foil
30. Means of writing on glassware
(water-resistant markers)
31. Hand lenses (not less than x6,
preferably x8)
32. Forceps
33. Scissors
34. Mounted needles
35. Cutting implement, such as solid-
edged razor blade/knife/scalpel
36. Rulers in mm (ideally clear
plastic)
37. Mortars and pestles
38. Safety spectacles or other
suitable eye protection
39. Microscope and lamp/inbuilt
illumination with high-power and
low-power objective lenses
40. (1 each or 1 between 2)
41. Eyepiece graticules and stage
micrometer scales
42. Microscope slides and glass
coverslips
43. Haemocytometers
44. Bench lamp with flexible arm
45. Balance (to 0.1 g)
46. Water-baths (thermostatically
controlled) or means to supply
hot water
47. Cork borers
48. Stopclock/timer showing
seconds
49. Simple respirometer – can be
‘homemade’
50. Pipe cleaners/other suitable aid
to demonstrate mitosis and
meiosis
51. Culture bottles, autoclave
52. Inoculating loops/wires
53. Tape for sealing dishes
54. Cultures of live yoghurt
55. Appropriate cultures of
microorganisms, such as
Escherichia coli, Bacillus subtilis
STOCKS OF SOLUTIONS
1. [H] – Iodine in potassium iodide
solution
2. [H] – Benedict’s solution
3. [C] – Biuret reagent/potassium
hydroxide and copper sulfate
solution
4. [F] – Ethanol (for fats test)
5. [F] – Methylated spirit (for
extraction of chlorophyll)
6. Sucrose (use Analar (AR) for non-
reducing sugar test. Some types
of table sugar contain reducing
7. sugars.)
8. Glucose
9. Starch
10. Albumen (or egg white)
11. [C] – Potassium hydroxide
12. [C] – Sodium hydroxide
13. Sodium chloride
14. [H] – Dilute hydrochloric acid
15. Hydrogencarbonate indicator
(with air pump to equilibrate to
atmospheric carbon dioxide)
16. Sodium bicarbonate/sodium
hydrogencarbonate
17. [H] – Limewater
18. [H] – Hydrogen peroxide
19. Distilled/deionised water
20. Universal Indicator paper and
chart
21. Litmus solution and red and blue
litmus paper
22. Eosin/red ink
23. [F] – Thymolphthalein indicator
24. [H] – Bromothymol blue
25. [H] – Methylene blue
26. Vaseline/petroleum jelly (or
similar)
27. DCPIP (dichlorophenol-
indophenol)
28. Ascorbic acid (vitamin C)
29. Diastix for testing glucose
concentration
30. Albustix or another appropriate
test strip for testing protein
31. [H] – Enzymes: amylase, trypsin
(or bacterial protease)
32. Materials for preparing
immobilised enzymes: calcium
chloride, sodium alginate
33. Plant sources of catalase, e.g.
sweet potatoes, mung beans,
potatoes
34. Wheat, barley or similar as a
source of starch
35. Non-competitive enzyme
inhibitor (e.g. [H] – copper sulfate
– hydrated)
36. Stains for preparing slides to
show mitosis, e.g. acetic
carmine, toluidine blue
37. [H] – Feulgen stain (Schiff’s
reagent)
38. Nutrient broth, nutrient agar and
technical agar (Note: technical
agar is suitable for making agar
blocks)
39. Appropriate disinfectants
40. Solvents for chromatography of
chloroplast pigments
41. Aquatic plants for photosynthesis
investigations, e.g. Elodea,
Cabomba
MICROSCOPIC SLIDES
1. Mitosis
2. TS stem, TS root and TS leaf of, for
example, dicotyledonous
mesophyte (such as Ligustrum or
Prunus
3. or local equivalent), maize, rice,
sorghum, wheat, xerophyte
leaves
4. LS stem, LS root to show xylem
vessel elements and sieve tube
elements and companion cells
5. TS trachea, TS bronchus, TS
bronchioles
6. TS lungs to show alveoli
7. TS artery, TS vein
8. Blood smear
9. Animal and plant cells;
Protoctists (e.g. Amoeba,
Euglena or local equivalents, for
example from a culture
10. made with water and hay to
stimulate single cell organisms)
11. Meiosis
12. TS anther, TS ovule
13. Pollen
14. VS maize fruit
15. TS kidney
16. TS spinal cord
17. Examples of organisms
representing the three kingdoms;
Protoctista (e.g. Amoeba,
Euglena or locally
18. available equivalents);
Prokaryotae (e.g. bacterial
smear, cyanobacteria); Fungi
(e.g. yeast, Penicillium)
