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The Hershey-Chase Experiment exam Flashcards

The Hershey-Chase Experiment exam
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  • Hershey-Chase Experiment
    An experiment in 1952 that confirmed DNA is the genetic material, not protein.
  • Bacteriophage
    A virus that infects and replicates within bacteria.
  • What did the Hershey-Chase experiment use to label viral proteins?
    Radioactive sulfur.
  • What did the Hershey-Chase experiment use to label viral DNA?
    Radioactive phosphorus.
  • What was the main conclusion of the Hershey-Chase experiment?
    DNA is the genetic material, not protein.
  • What remained outside the bacterial cells during the Hershey-Chase experiment?
    The viral protein coat.
  • What entered the bacterial cells during the Hershey-Chase experiment?
    The viral DNA.
  • Alfred Hershey
    One of the scientists who conducted the Hershey-Chase experiment.
  • Martha Chase
    One of the scientists who conducted the Hershey-Chase experiment.
  • What did the Hershey-Chase experiment resolve?
    The debate over whether DNA or protein is the genetic material.
  • What is the significance of the Hershey-Chase experiment in molecular biology?
    It established DNA as the carrier of genetic information.
  • What is a nucleic acid core?
    The central part of a bacteriophage containing DNA or RNA.
  • What did scientists initially believe could be the genetic material before the Hershey-Chase experiment?
    Proteins.
  • What did the radioactive sulfur label in the Hershey-Chase experiment?
    The viral protein coat.
  • What did the radioactive phosphorus label in the Hershey-Chase experiment?
    The viral DNA.
  • What did the Hershey-Chase experiment demonstrate about bacteriophage infection?
    Only viral DNA enters the bacterial cell, not the protein coat.
  • What is the external protein coat of a bacteriophage?
    The outer layer of a bacteriophage that surrounds the nucleic acid core.
  • What was the method used to trace viral particles in the Hershey-Chase experiment?
    Radioactive labeling.
  • What did the Hershey-Chase experiment confirm about the role of DNA?
    DNA serves as the genetic material.
  • What did the Hershey-Chase experiment show about the viral protein coat?
    It remains outside the bacterial cell during infection.
  • What was the key evidence from the Hershey-Chase experiment?
    Radioactively labeled DNA was found inside bacterial cells.
  • What did the Hershey-Chase experiment use to infect bacteria?
    Bacteriophages.
  • What was the controversy before the Hershey-Chase experiment?
    Whether DNA or protein was the genetic material.
  • What did the Hershey-Chase experiment help to understand?
    The mechanism of bacteriophage infection.
  • What did the Hershey-Chase experiment use to differentiate between DNA and protein?
    Radioactive isotopes.
  • What was the role of bacteriophages in the Hershey-Chase experiment?
    To demonstrate that DNA is the genetic material.
  • What did the Hershey-Chase experiment contribute to genetics?
    It provided conclusive evidence that DNA is the genetic material.
  • What did the Hershey-Chase experiment reveal about the nature of genetic material?
    That it is DNA, not protein.
  • What was the impact of the Hershey-Chase experiment on scientific skepticism?
    It convinced most scientists that DNA is the genetic material.