MINISTRY OF EDUCATION
SECONDARY ENGAGEMENT PROGRAMME
GRADE 10
BIOLOGY
Week 13 Lesson 1
Topic: Nutrition in Animals
Sub-topic: Nutrition/Food Tests
Objectives After reading the handout and completing the worksheet, students will:
- describe the process of testing for starch, lipids and proteins
- correctly identify the different reagents used in testing for starch, protein and lipids
Content
- Food provides energy and essential amino acids to maintain homeostasis. Therefore, using
a simple food test to identify a substance in food is also significantly important.
- The Iodine Test for starch is used to determine the presence of starch in biological
materials.
- The Biuret Test is commonly used to test for the presence of protein in foods
- The Emulsion and Grease spot tests are used to test for the presence of lipids
- Each type of substances reacts with the different reagent, hence the various colour
changes when food tests are conducted
Testing for Starch
There are many types of carbohydrates. The main carbohydrates found in our food are in the
form of starch and sugars. We can easily test if a food item contains starch using the following
methods outlined:
- Take small quantity of the food items to be tested
- Put 2-3 drops of iodine solution on it.
- Observe the colour of the food item.
- Blue-black colour indicates the presence of starch in the tested food item.
Testing for protein
Proteins are needed for the growth and repair of our bodies. Foods containing proteins are often
called ‘Body Building Foods’. The Biuret Test is commonly used to test if a food item contains
protein. The following is done :
- Take a small quantity of the food items to be tested.
- Grind/mash/paste/powder the food item.
- Put the food item into a test tube.
- Add 10 drops of water and shake the test tube.
- Using a dropper add two drops of copper sulphate solution to the test tube.
- Add 10 drops of sodium hydroxide solution and shake the test tube.
- Observe the colour of the mixture.
- A violet\ purple colour indicates the presence of proteins in the tested food item.
Testing for lipids
The Ethanol Emulsion Test is a food test that determines the presence of a broad group of naturally
occurring compounds known as lipids. Lipids consist of fats and oils. Another way of testing for
lipids is by using the Grease Spot Test. The Grease spot test is performed on fats - lipids that are
solid at room temperature. The Ethanol Emulsion Test is the most common test between the two.
The Emulsion Test
Procedure for conducting Emulsion Test on a Solid sample:
- Crush the food sample and place it in a dry test tube.
- Add ethanol to about 2 cm3 above the level of the sample and shake thoroughly.
- Allow the solid to settle (about 3 min) to allow the lipid to be extracted.
- Decant the ethanol into another test tube.
- Add 2 cm3 of water to the second test tube
- a cloudy/milky-white mixture indicates the presence of lipids
Liquid sample
Procedure for conducting Emulsion Test on a Solid sample:
- Add a few drops of the liquid food sample to a dry test tube.
- Add 2 cm3 ethanol and shake it thoroughly
- Add 2 cm3 of water.
- Make observations.
- a cloudy /milky-white mixture indicates the presence of lipids
The Grease spot test
This simple test for lipids has been used for centuries. The grease-spot test requires for the lipid
to be in a liquid form. Semi-solid lipids, because of the higher degree of saturation in the fatty acid
chains, have melting points higher than room temperature and therefore need to be mildly heated
before testing. A translucent “spot” or “stain” on fabrics indicates the presence of lipids.
Procedure for conducting a grease spot test:
- Dissolve a small amount of oil in ether
- Put one drop of the ether soluble oil on a piece of filter paper.
- Heat the spot on the paper until the solvent evaporates.
- a transparent spot or stain indicates the presence of lipid.
Home-work
Research on the term hydration synthesis
References
Amrita Learning.(2013). Test For Starch, Proteins and Fats. Retrieved from
aven.amritalearning.com/index.php?sub=99&brch=289&sim=1431&cnt=3239
Brillant Biology Student. (n.d). Ethanol Emulsion Test for Fats and Oils. Retrieved from
http://brilliantbiologystudent.weebly.com/ethanol-emulsion-test-for-
lipids.html#:~:text=Ethanol%20Emulsion%20Test%20for%20Fats,and%20the%20Sudan
%20Stain%20Test.
UKEssays.(2018). Testing for Starch, Sugar and Protein in Foods. Retrieved from
https://www.ukessays.com/essays/biology/food-tests-to-identify-biochemical-molecules-
biology-essay.php
