Question

In their famous experiment, what would Meselson and Stahl have observed after one cycle of replication in 14N medium if DNA replication were conservative?

1) Equal amounts of DNA with both heavy and light nitrogen
2) DNA with heavy nitrogen only
3) DNA with light nitrogen only
4) No change in the DNA composition

Answer 1

Meselson and Stahl would have observed equal amounts of DNA with both heavy and light nitrogen if DNA replication were conservative.

Step-by-step explanation:

Meselson and Stahl's famous experiment on DNA replication ruled out the conservative model, which states that the two strands of DNA separate during replication, and each strand serves as a template for the synthesis of a new complementary strand. If DNA replication were conservative, they would have observed equal amounts of DNA with both heavy and light nitrogen after one cycle of replication in a 14N medium.