Question

What does it mean when we say that DNA replication is semiconservative? A. Each old strand is used as a template for a new strand for the daughter cell. B. The daughter cell receives the old DNA while the parent cell gets a new copy. C. The daughter cell receives the new copy while the parent cell keeps the old DNA. D. Nothing in the DNA is ever changed.

Answer 1

The answer is A. When DNA replicates, it unzips itself, creates new complementary strands using the original strands of the DNA molecule as templates, and then re zips itself back up. Thus DNA replicates in a semi conservative fashion, as there is always one template from the parent molecule in each new molecule.