Discovery of DNA's structure and function Original Scenario-Based Download PDF

Questions

1. 1.

   In an underwater research habitat, biologists test the molecular basis of inheritance by adapting the historical Avery–MacLeod–McCarty protocol using a bioluminescent bacterium. They prepare a cell-free extract from a heat-killed, glowing strain and divide it into separate aliquots treated with protease, ribonuclease (RNase), deoxyribonuclease (DNase), or lipase, before incubating each mixture with a non-glowing recipient strain. Following incubation, thriving colonies of glowing bacteria emerge from every mixture except the one treated with deoxyribonuclease. Which conclusion regarding the discovery of genetic material is directly demonstrated by this outcome?

   • A) DNA is the indispensable transforming principle required to transfer hereditary traits between bacterial cells.
   • B) Proteins serve as the primary catalytic matrix that actively directs genetic recombination.
   • C) Ribonucleic acid acts as the sole structural template required to maintain persistent inherited traits.
   • D) Lipid membranes provide the essential informational code necessary to initiate bacterial phenotype conversion.