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Introduction:
If you have problems digesting milk, ice cream, yogurt,
cheese or other dairy foods, chances are that you are one of
the 75% of the world’s population who are “lactose
intolerant”. Lactaid is a product designed to help people who
cannot digest milk sugar (Lactose) because they are missing
the enzyme Lactase. Normally, in our digestive system,
Lactase is the enzyme that breaks down lactose into two
monosaccharides: glucose and galactose so that our body can use the glucose as energy.
!
To test for the presence of monosaccharides (such as glucose) and reducing disaccharide sugars
in food, the food sample is dissolved in water, and a small amount of Benedict's Solution is
added.
Interestingly, most people are born with the ability to produce the lactase enzyme and can digest
lactose sugar during infancy and early childhood, while drinking mother’s milk. But many
lactose intolerant people gradually produce less lactase as they grow older.
If you have lactose intolerance, you should know about “hidden” sources of lactose. Although
milk and foods made from milk are the only natural sources of lactose sugar, lactose is often
added to prepared foods. Some so-called “non-dairy” products (powdered coffee creamer and
whipped toppings) may include ingredients that come from milk, and therefore contain lactose.
Lactose is an added ingredient in more than 20% of prescription drugs and about 6% of over-the-
counter medicines.
Many people who are lactose intolerant avoid dairy foods and foods containing lactose.
However, these foods generally do not have to be eliminated from the diet. To make foods
containing lactose easier to digest, natural enzyme supplements can be taken before or with a
meal. Supplements such as Lactaid can help make lactose-containing foods easier to digest.
Lactaid contains the enzyme lactase. The caplet form of Lactaid is swallowed or chewed
before eating dairy products. The drop form of Lactaid is mixed with milk to produce lactose-
free milk. When you use any of these supplements, you are eating the enzyme that you normally
would be producing.
Pre-Lab Questions
1. What is the sugar found in milk?
4. If you are lactose intolerant, explain how your body will respond to the milk sugar.
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Procedures: In this lab, you will investigate the action of the enzyme lactase. Specifically, you
will be designing a detailed experiment to test the effect of Lactaid on milk. The directions
below will guide you in planning the experiment so that you test all possible variables. The goal
is to understand how Lactaid functions to help people with lactose intolerance and also to
understand how enzymes function in general.
Design an experiment where you would determine how quickly Lactaid works to break down
milk sugar in different conditions.
Experimental Control: Complete the tests below to see positive and negative results
* Don’t forget that Benedict’s Solution needs 1-2 minutes in a hot water bath to see results
The positive control is an experiment whose result is already known to be positive, it is used to
check that nothing went wrong during the procedure.
The negative control is an experiment done with a sample/mock sample that should normally
yield a negative result.
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Materials:
You will be given the following materials:
Procedures:
Design a controlled experiment that shows the effect of Lactaid on Milk Sugar (Lactose).
Make sure your experiment description includes the following:
A test to determine what happens to Lactaid when it has been denatured (temperature and pH)
A data table
EXPERIMENT RESEARCH PROPOSAL FORM
3. Independent Variable (What am “I” (the scientist) going to be testing in this experiment?, “If”)
6. Based on Steps 3-5, set up an Experimental Design (Procedure) Use as many steps as
necessary.
a.
b.
c.
d.
e.
7. Data Table (Using a ruler, create a table to collect your data in.)
Lactaid (Lactase)
Lactose (Milk Sugar) Glucose + Galactose
4. Can an enzyme be used to speed up any reaction or is it specific to just one reaction?
Explain.
5. Explain why enzymes are so important to living organisms. (What is the function of
enzymes?)
In the following diagram, draw arrows to show the sequence of events and label: lactase
(Lactaid), lactose, glucose, galactose. Use the diagram on page 1 to assist you.