In the Hershey-Chase experiment, what was labeled by growing bacteriophage in 32P-containing medium?

A DNA

B proteins

C RNA

D lipids

E ghost phage particles

Answer: A DNA

Explanation:

The Hershey-Chase experiment was used to to confirm that DNA is genetic material.

Before that, scientists believed that proteins carried the information for inheritance, because DNA appeared to be an inert molecule located in the nucleus, and its role was considered to be phosphorus storage.

Bacteriophages infect a bacterium by injecting its genetic material into it. Hershey and Chase used a bacteriophage called T2 phage. To probe that DNA is the genetic material, they labeled its DNA with radioactive phosphorus-32. On the other hand, they labeled proteins of the phage with radioactive sulfur-35, this is because sulfur is contained in protein but not in DNA.

The phages infect a bacterium, injects the genetic material, hijacks the cell to make more phages, and then kills the bacterium by making it explode. In their experiments, Hershey and Chase probed that when bacteriophages infect bacteria, the genetic material injected is DNA. This is because phosphorus-32 was found in the bacterium.