Question

Studies by Avery, MacLeod, and McCarty with different strains of bacteria and those by Hershey and Chase with T2 bacteriophage determined that proteins are highly complex molecules that form the genetic material for bacteria and viruses.

Answer 1

Martha Chase and Alfred Hershey's experiment provided evidence that DNA is the genetic material, not proteins.

Step-by-step explanation:

The experiments conducted by Martha Chase and Alfred Hershey in 1952 provided confirmatory evidence that DNA is the genetic material, not proteins.

They studied a bacteriophage, which is a virus that infects bacteria.

The phage attaches to the surface of the bacterial cell and injects its nucleic acids inside.

Hershey and Chase labeled one batch of phage with radioactive sulfur to label the protein coat and another batch with radioactive phosphorus to label the DNA.

Since phosphorous is found in DNA, but not protein, the DNA was tagged with radioactive phosphorus.

This experiment showed that DNA, not proteins, carries the genetic information.