Question

Hershey and Chase used the 35S isotope to label proteins. How does this isotope differ from the 32S isotope found in greatest natural abundance, and why did they choose 35S instead of 32S?

A. 35S has more protons than 32S; Hershey and Chase used it because it has a greater mass.

B. 35S has fewer protons than 32S; Hershey and Chase used it because it is radioactive and can be easily traced.

C.35S has more neutrons than 32S; Hershey and Chase used it because it is radioactive and can be easily traced.

D. 35S has fewer neutrons than 32S; Hershey and Chase

Answer 1

"35S has more neutrons than 32S; Hershey and Chase used it because it is radioactive and can be easily traced" is the way this isotope differ from the 32S isotope found in greatest natural abundance and this is why they chose 35S instead of 32S. The correct option among all the options given in the question is option "C".

Answer 2

The correct answer would be C. ³⁵S has more neutrons than ³²S; Hershey and Chase used it because it is radioactive and can be easily traced.

Sulfur-35 (³⁵S) is one of the isotopes of the sulfur which has 16 protons (same as sulfur-32) but 19 neutrons as compared to the 16 neutrons of sulfur-32.

It is a radioactive isotope which breaks down by beta-decay and gets converted into ³⁵Cl.

They used ³⁵S for radioactive labeling of the protein coat of the bacteriophage. It helped them to trace the movement or transfer of protein efficiently.