Journal of Laboratory Chemical Education
2016; 4(1): 9-18
doi:10.5923/j.jlce.20160401.03
Todd Pagano1, Mark Goik1, David C. Templeton1, Annemarie D. Ross1, Susan B. Smith2
1Department of Science & Mathematics, Laboratory Science Technology Program, National Technical Institute for the Deaf / Rochester Institute of Technology, Rochester, USA
2Thomas H. Gosnell School of Life Sciences, Rochester Institute of Technology, Rochester, USA
Correspondence to: Todd Pagano, Department of Science & Mathematics, Laboratory Science Technology Program, National Technical Institute for the Deaf / Rochester Institute of Technology, Rochester, USA.
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Copyright © 2016 Scientific & Academic Publishing. All Rights Reserved.
This work is licensed under the Creative Commons Attribution International License (CC BY).
http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0/
Developing strategies to engage students in the science classroom and laboratory is a critical task of any post-secondary science instructor/professor. The use of narratives and project-based learning are two methods that can be effective in enhancing the learning process and maximizing student success in coursework. We were inspired by the book, Napoleon’s Buttons: How 17 Molecules Changed History by Couteur & Burreson [1], to develop a series of skill-building activities that could be used as individual or interrelated laboratory experiments or as a capstone project to teach/enforce a variety of chemistry (and some associated biology-related) content in the post-secondary science laboratory. The book discusses the importance of nutmeg and its active component, isoeugenol, within the historical context of potentially protecting individuals against the Black Plague and also nutmeg’s role in the Treaty of Breda [1]. Using this narrative, the essential oil of nutmeg formed the topic for the series of project-based laboratory activities. The essential oil of nutmeg was extracted, isoeugenol was identified and quantified using a variety of analytical methods, and zone of inhibition microbial tests and antioxidant capacity measurements were performed on nutmeg. Analytical instrumentation traditional to the chemistry curriculum; including high performance liquid chromatography (HPLC), gas chromatography (GC), and infrared spectroscopy were employed, with a microplate spectrophotometer used as an extension activity. In addition, general laboratory skills such as sample/standard preparation, sterile technique, calibration curves, and the analytical process were enforced.
Keywords: Nutmeg, Isoeugenol, HPLC, Gas chromatography, Infrared spectroscopy, Microplate spectrophotometer, Antioxidant capacity, Zone of Inhibition, Historical narrative, Project-based learning
Cite this paper: Todd Pagano, Mark Goik, David C. Templeton, Annemarie D. Ross, Susan B. Smith, Exploring Nutmeg’s Intriguing Place in History Using Narrative and Project-Based Approaches in the Science Laboratory, Journal of Laboratory Chemical Education, Vol. 4 No. 1, 2016, pp. 9-18. doi: 10.5923/j.jlce.20160401.03.
Figure 1. HPLC chromatogram showing matching peaks for nutmeg oil working sample (red, 30 mg/mL in methanol) and the isoeugenol standard (blue, 800 ppm in methanol) |
Figure 2. GC chromatograms showing matching peaks for the nutmeg oil working sample (top, 30 mg/mL in methanol) and isoeugenol standard (bottom, 800 ppm in methanol) |
Figure 3. Calibration curve based on HPLC analysis used to quantify isoeugenol in nutmeg oil. Data points represent average of three replicate injections and error bars are ± one standard deviation |
Figure 4. Infrared spectra of 98% isoeugenol standard (top) and 100% nutmeg oil sample (bottom). Arrows show a couple characteristic frequencies of isoeugenol |
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Figure 6. ABTS Trolox standard curve |
Figure 7. ABTS kinetic profile for nutmeg over 15 minutes of reaction |
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