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Multiple Choice
In the Hershey-Chase experiment demonstrating that DNA is the genetic material, Hershey and Chase began with a virus called a(n) ____.
A
Viroid
B
Retrovirus
C
Prion
D
Bacteriophage (T2 phage)
Verified step by step guidance
1
Understand the context of the Hershey-Chase experiment, which was designed to determine whether DNA or protein is the genetic material in viruses.
Recall that Hershey and Chase used a specific type of virus that infects bacteria, known as a bacteriophage, to conduct their experiment.
Recognize that the bacteriophage used was specifically the T2 phage, a virus that attaches to bacterial cells and injects its genetic material.
Note that the experiment involved labeling the DNA with radioactive phosphorus (\(^{32}P\)) and the protein coat with radioactive sulfur (\(^{35}S\)) to track which molecule entered the bacterial cells.
Conclude that the virus used in the Hershey-Chase experiment was a bacteriophage (T2 phage), which helped demonstrate that DNA is the genetic material.