Willravel

I've been looking for some new art for my place and I think I may have just found it at this site:
http://www.dna11.com/

They take your DNA code at create a piece of art on canvas for you. VERY novel idea and I think very tasteful. Simply swab the inside of your cheek just like you used to in Bio 101, mail it in, and get a gorgeous canvas in whatever color you want so that you can have an intelligent conversation piece.

lktknow

what a clever idea. and the fact of it being a conversation piece only adds to it.

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Willravel

It's way better than a landscape or something, imho. I'm looking at the red one or the orange one, medium size.

PonyPotato

That's awesome!

I actually worked with my own mtDNA in my honors molecular genetics class. We also worked with bacterial DNA--fun stuff. I might still have the photos of my gels, so I might be able to paint my own! Sweet!

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"Without passion man is a mere latent force and possibility, like the flint which awaits the shock of the iron before it can give forth its spark."
— Henri-Frédéric Amiel

Hain

Hmmm well if I ever commit a crime and DNA is involved, they can hold up their test to my new wall decoration.

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Sion

I dont trust the government with my dna...I wouldn't trust some random company with an internet site with it either.

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Some wrong been done, he done it first. -fz

I jus' want ta thank you...falettinme...be mice elf...agin...

Willravel

merleniau brings up the valid point that it would be very easy to make your own. If you're worried about the men in black, just make your own gels. I'm sure you can get basic kits from science class suppliers.

Plan9

Oooh, better scrape your scalp and get those loose hairs before you leave the house.

...

Nevermind. I'm a DoD slave.

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PonyPotato

We ran gels through electrophoresis in high school, even. I think the only thing you might not find cheaply is a good centrifuge. I think we used the little squeezy pipets in high school and they came out fine.. molgen, on the other hand, was a lot more precise since we were doing "real" experiments.

The pattern you'll get depends on what enzyme you use to cut the DNA. I would assume that you can get different restriction enzymes to create different patterns.

It was also kind of a pain in the ass to isolate mitochondrial DNA in molgen. Involved ice baths, warm water baths, all kinds of stuff.. I think the kits we used in high school were pre-packaged DNA that just needed to be cut with an enzyme and put in the wells in a gel to run against a ladder.

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"Without passion man is a mere latent force and possibility, like the flint which awaits the shock of the iron before it can give forth its spark."
— Henri-Frédéric Amiel

Willravel

Most people (esp. men, for some odd reason) have strong enough forearms to emulate a centrifuge to the degree where one will get the desired result.

PonyPotato

http://www.carolina.com/product/life...ortby=ourPicks

http://www.carolina.com/product/life...ortby=ourPicks

http://www.carolina.com/product/life...ortby=ourPicks

All of those require a thermal cycler (water bath[s]), electrophoresis equipment, and micropipetors.

I'm a big nerd, so I'm loving looking this stuff up.

Holy crap, the electrophoresis equipment is expensive: http://www.carolina.com/product/213620.do

I'll post again if I can find something more reasonable.

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"Without passion man is a mere latent force and possibility, like the flint which awaits the shock of the iron before it can give forth its spark."
— Henri-Frédéric Amiel

Hektore

My first thought was exactly 'I wonder what restriction enzymes they use?'

That was the most detailed description I could find on their website. This raised a second question, 'What loci to the amplify with PCR?'. Which now makes me somewhat skeptical, I mean, depending on which loci they use their may only be a couple of alleles for each locus, which means your odds of being completely unique are much lower than if the whole genome was included. For example say there are only 3 alleles at each of 5 different loci that they use, thats only 125 different possible portraits, although this number increases with the use of different digestions, there are still only 125 different sequences to digest. Although that doesn't say anything about a restriction enzyme digestion, so maybe they don't do it.

I realize they say that But I have a hard time believing they actually do this as it would be extraordinarily expensive, and so far I don't know of any speedy, reliable way to scan the entire genome. Then they would have to create their own primers specially for you, not that that step is hard, but for a commercial endeavor It would be much easier and more cost effective to have a standard set on hand to use. Not to mention the very large problem of not having access to every single persons complete genome to be able to say 'hey, these are unique to you and nobody else can possibly have just this sequence.'

Basically, I'm calling BS on their supposed method. I'm thinking it was probably written by a combination designer/marketing team who based it off some notes they really didn't read or understand enough to be able to say what's going on anyway.

Of course this isn't to say it's not damn cool, which it is. I would still love to have one. Of course I would be inclined to attempt my own having already done one in genetics lab. I would skip the thermal bath and just use a thermometer/hotplate/stove& pan combination. I realize this would be remarkably tedious but would work. I would also be crazy about building my own electrophoresis apparatus. This I don't think would be especially difficult either, since I could build my own AC to DC converter and the depth of the buffer is more important that the chamber construction (to a degree). UV lights are cheap enough, but ethidium bromide is toxic, and would need special disposal, which could be costly.

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bobby

I liked the kiss/lip pics better....but that's just me

xoxoxoo

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SSJTWIZTA

Im with bobby.

The DNA potrait is awesome, but i like the lips better.

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First they came for the Jews and I did not speak out because I was not a Jew.
Then they came for the communists and I did not speak out because I was not a communist.
Then they came for the trade unionists and I did not speak out because I was not a trade unionist
Then they came for me And there was no one left to speak out for me.
-Pastor Martin Niemoller

genuinegirly

Tacky.
I see enough of these every day. (studying plant genetics) Why would I want to look at them when I'm at home? I think I'd go crazy.

And how do you know it's your DNA? I mean, really... you could be looking at a gel run of a yeast for all you know.

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AngelaSI

I prefer the kiss portraits over the DNArt.