Final answer:
A common method to identify E. coli with the desired recombinant DNA is by using a plasmid, which often contains an antibiotic resistance marker for easy selection.
Step-by-step explanation:
A common way to identify the E. coli that carries the desired recombinant DNA is by using a plasmid.
There are various plasmids, such as pMB-9 and pBR-322, which act as cloning vectors to create recombinant DNA. These plasmids often contain an antibiotic resistance gene. After transformation, the bacterial host will only grow on agar containing the antibiotic if it carries the plasmid with the resistance gene.
Therefore, this method allows scientists to easily identify which colonies have been transformed with the recombinant plasmid. The process of introducing the recombinant DNA into a host cell, such as E. coli or a lambda phage particle, is known as transformation.
Once the transformation is successful, the host cell can replicate, transcribe, and translate the recombinant DNA, leading to the production of the desired product. Cloning allows for many copies of the gene of interest to be made, and the use of antibiotic resistance aids in the selection of successful recombinant cells.