NEETZoologyMolecular Basis of Inheritance
Given below are two statements: one is labelled as Assertion (A) and the other is labelled as Reason (R). Assertion (A): The unequivocal proof that DNA is the genetic material came from the experiments of Oswald Avery, Colin MacLeod, and Maclyn McCarty. Reason (R): They discovered that digestion with DNase inhibited transformation, suggesting that DNA caused the transformation. In the light of the above statements, c
Options
- ABoth (A) and (R) are true and (R) is the correct explanation of (A)
- BBoth (A) and (R) are true but (R) is not the correct explanation of (A)
- C(A) is true but (R) is false
- D(A) is false but (R) is true
Correct answer
D. (A) is false but (R) is true
Step-by-step solution
Assertion (A) is false because the unequivocal proof that DNA is the genetic material came from the experiments of Alfred Hershey and Martha Chase in 1952, who worked with bacteriophages. The work of Avery, MacLeod, and McCarty provided the biochemical characterisation of the transforming principle, but not all biologists were convinced by it. Reason (R) is true because Avery, MacLeod, and McCarty discovered that protein-digesting enzymes (proteases) and RNA-digesting enzymes (RNases) did not affect transformation,