Who performed experiments on Vicia faba to prove that the DNA replicates semi-conservatively?
Answer & explanation
Correct answer: option 1
The correct answer is Option (1) → Taylor and colleagues
Option (1) Taylor and colleagues — Correct. They used radioactive thymidine to follow the new DNA in the chromosomes of Vicia faba.
Option (2) Matthew Meselson — Incorrect. Meselson, with Stahl, proved semi-conservative replication in 1958 too, but in the bacterium E. coli, grown on heavy nitrogen (15N).
Option (3) Stahl — Incorrect. Franklin Stahl was Meselson’s partner in the same E. coli experiment, not the Vicia faba one.
Option (4) Hershey and Chase — Incorrect. Hershey and Chase used bacteriophages to prove that DNA is the genetic material. They did not study how DNA replicates.
NCERT Extract:
The Experimental Proof – “… Very similar experiments involving use of radioactive thymidine to detect distribution of newly synthesised DNA in the chromosomes was performed on Vicia faba (faba beans) by Taylor and colleagues in 1958. The experiments proved that the DNA in chromosomes also replicate semiconservatively.”