1. Tardigrade
  2. Question
  3. Biology
  4. In the Avery, MacLoed, and McCarty experiment, which of the following enzyme did not affect the process of transformation?

Question Error Report

Thank you for reporting, we will resolve it shortly

Back to Question

Q. In the Avery, MacLoed, and McCarty experiment, which of the following enzyme did not affect the process of transformation?

NTA AbhyasNTA Abhyas 2020Molecular Basis of Inheritance

Solution:

Prior to the work of Oswald Avery, Colin MacLeod and Maclyn McCarty (1933-44), the genetic material was thought to be a protein. They worked to determine the biochemical nature of ‘transforming principle’ in Griffith's experiment. They purified biochemicals (proteins, DNA, RNA, etc.) from the heat-killed S-cells to see which ones could transform live R-cells into S-cells. They discovered that DNA alone from S-cells bacteria caused R bacteria to become transformed. They also discovered that protein-digesting enzymes (proteases) and RNA-digesting enzymes (RNases) did not affect transformation, so the transforming substance was not a protein or RNA. Digestion with DNase did inhibit transformation, suggesting that the DNA caused the transformation. They concluded that DNA is the hereditary material, but not all biologists were convinced.