Question

Why is lysogeny advantageous to a bacteriophage

A) the genetic material of the bacteriophage can be passed on to the future generation of cells
B) it speeds up the viral infection cycle
C) it allows the bacteriophage to infect cells it would not normally infect
D) it enables the bacteriophage to take over the cells
E) it allows the bacteriophage to destroy the host cells DNA

Answer 1

Lysogeny is beneficial for bacteriophages as it allows their genetic material to be passed to future cell generations and potentially results in greater virion production over time compared to the lytic cycle alone.

Step-by-step explanation:

Lysogeny is advantageous to a bacteriophage for several reasons. One critical advantage is that the genetic material of the bacteriophage can be passed on to future generations of cells. This occurs because, in the lysogenic cycle, the phage DNA is incorporated into the host genome, forming a prophage which gets replicated along with the host's DNA as the bacterium reproduces.

Environmental stressors may prompt the prophage to excise and switch to the lytic cycle. Thus, not only does lysogeny provide a method for the phage to persist in a latent form within host populations, but it also can result in the production of more virions over time compared to a purely lytic cycle.

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