Final Answer:
The three main methods of gene transfer in bacteria are transformation, transduction, and conjugation. These processes involve the uptake of DNA, transfer via bacteriophages, and direct cell-to-cell transfer, respectively. The correct answer is A) Transformation, transduction, and conjugation.
Step-by-step explanation:
The three main methods of gene transfer in bacteria are Transformation, transduction, and conjugation. Transformation involves the uptake of foreign DNA from the environment, enabling the integration of new genetic material. Transduction is the transfer of genetic material via bacteriophages, which are viruses that infect bacteria and carry bacterial DNA between cells. Conjugation is the direct transfer of genetic material through physical contact between bacterial cells, facilitated by a conjugative pilus.
Options B) Replication, transcription, and translation describe fundamental cellular processes but not mechanisms of gene transfer. Option C) Mitosis, meiosis, and binary fission pertain to eukaryotic cell division and prokaryotic cell division, not gene transfer. Option D) Cloning, sequencing, and hybridization are molecular biology techniques, not methods of gene transfer in bacteria.