Why Was the Bacterial Virus That Hershey and Chase Used

question 2

Multiple Choice

Why was the bacterial virus that Hershey and Chase used a good experimental system for determining whether DNA or protein was the molecule of inheritance?

• A) The virus only contained DNA and protein and it was already known that the virus only injected its inheritable material into the cells it infected.
• B) The DNA portion of the virus that Hershey and Chase used was known to be naturally radioactive, but the protein portion was not radioactive.
• C) Viruses only reproduce outside of cells so it is easy to isolate their molecule of inheritance.
• D) The DNA of viruses has a different, easier to visualize, structure than the DNA of humans.

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Definitions:

tRNA

Transfer RNA, a type of RNA molecule that helps decode a messenger RNA (mRNA) sequence into a protein during the process of translation.

Polyribosome

A complex consisting of a number of ribosomes attached to an mRNA during translation; also known as a polysome.

Ribosomes

Molecular machines within cells where proteins are synthesized, following the instructions encoded in RNA.

mRNA

Messenger RNA, which carries genetic information from DNA to the ribosome, where it serves as a template for protein synthesis.