During the biochemical characterization of Griffith's transforming principle, it was observed that the transformation of non-virulent R strain bacteria into virulent S strain was inhibited by the addition of which of the following enzymes?

Step-by-step solution

Avery, MacLeod, and McCarty performed the biochemical characterization of Griffith's transforming principle. They purified biochemicals such as proteins, DNA, and RNA from heat-killed S cells to determine which molecule could transform live R cells into S cells. They observed that protein-digesting enzymes (proteases) and RNA-digesting enzymes (RNases) did not affect the transformation of the non-virulent R strain into the virulent S strain. However, digestion with DNase inhibited the transformation, proving that D