Biology Quarter 1 Mandated Portfolio, GSE (9-11) NOS LS3 6a

PTC Tasting Studies at EPHS

The ability to taste phenylthiocarbamide (PTC) has been an activity conducted in
human genetics for generations. The ability to taste PTC is inherited. Traditionally
presented as a case of simple Mendelian inheritance involving a dominant allele for
tasting and a recessive allele for nontasting, PTC tasting is now known as far more
than an either/or trait. There is great variability in the taste threshold for PTC.
The amount of PTC that must be present for a person to recognize its taste varies
greatly by individual. This means that it is possible for a student to score as a
nontaster when tested with the PTC taste paper and score as a taster if a higher
concentration of PTC is used.

PTC taste data was collected from thirteen biology classes at EPHS and is
presented in Figure 1 below. Because the concentration of PTC in the taste paper
used was extremely low, it is likely that only those students with a high sensitivity
to PTC were able to taste it. Students who reported a bitter, unpleasant taste
were scored as tasters and were asked to self-report their degree of taste as
strong or weak. Students who reported tasting nothing other than paper were
recorded as nontasters. Population studies interpreted in this manner show that
70% of students will be tasters and 30% of students will be nontasters of PTC.
Values from any given class may show variation from these percentages due to the
small size of the sample.

Figure 1: PTC Tasting Patterns of Biology Students at EPHS

Total
Class Strong Tasters Weak Tasters Tasters Non-Tasters
C1 13 5 18 4
C3 16 3 19 2
C6 12 8 20 4
C7 13 5 18 6
M4 10 5 15 5
M5 17 4 21 3
M6 17 7 24 3
S3 16 3 19 0
S4 16 5 21 2
G6 2 8 10 11
G7 14 5 19 5
L3 11 7 18 6
L4 14 2 16 4

Version 1: 6/20/2009
 Biology Quarter 1 Mandated Portfolio, GSE (9-11) NOS LS3 6a
PTC Tasting Studies at EPHS

1. Preview questions 2-5 below. After gathering a general overview of the types of
questions you are being asked, look back at the two paragraphs presented above
and highlight or underline the key information you will need to answer the
questions presented in this assignment.

2. Calculate the percentages of actual tasters (strong and weak) and nontasters in the
population tested. Be sure to show all work for your calculations.

3. Discuss the relationship of the data presented in Figure 1 to that documented from
PTC testing of the general population. Use percent error calculations to quantify
the differences exhibited in the data collected at EPHS. Why do you think the
EPHS data differs from that found in the general population? Be sure to provide
evidence to justify your claims.

Version 1: 6/20/2009
 Biology Quarter 1 Mandated Portfolio, GSE (9-11) NOS LS3 6a
PTC Tasting Studies at EPHS

4. Scatter plots are similar to line graphs in that they use horizontal and vertical axes to
plot data points. However, they are used to analyze large bodies of data. Create a scatter
plot (a line graph without the data points connected) of the data shown in Figure 1 that
displays the Biology Class vs. Taster Patterns. Be sure to incorporate all key components
of a graph.

Version 1: 6/20/2009
 Biology Quarter 1 Mandated Portfolio, GSE (9-11) NOS LS3 6a
PTC Tasting Studies at EPHS

5. An outlier is an observation that is numerically distant from the rest of the data.
Statistics derived from data sets that include outliers may be misleading. Use the
graph that was generated in question 3 above to identify any outliers present in the
EPHS PTC data set. List these outliers using biology class numbers and specific
tasting patterns as identifiers. Generate a hypothesis that may be used to explore if
these outliers are true results or generated by experimental error.

Version 1: 6/20/2009