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Dissection Club

Last term, students in Year 11 enjoyed dissecting a cow's eye and kidney in the college dissection club.

Last term, students in Year 11 enjoyed dissecting a cow's eye and kidney in the college dissection club. Pictured are Maddison and Merryn, who have cut a cross section of the kidney to see the renal pelvis, cortex and medulla, which includes reddish pyramids containing millions of tubules that filter the blood and form urine. 

They then added hydrogen peroxide to one side of the kidney, which when added effervesces due to the enzyme catalase present in the cells of the kidney breaking it down into oxygen and water. Some of the oxygen gets trapped inside the tubules, which makes them visible to the naked eye.

Our students really enjoy this aspect of science as it allows them to understand the processes involved in dissection but also the inner workings of the human body in a much more practical and hands-on manner.