Which treatment removed the transforming power of the dead bacteria?

Question

Avery, MacLeod, and McCarty followed up on Griffith's S. pneumoniae transformation experiment by removing or destroying certain fractions of the heat-killed bacteria preparation. Which treatment removed the transforming power of the dead bacteria?

A. removing protein

B. digesting DNA enzymatically

C. removing carbohydrates

D. removing lipids and proteins

Answer 1

The answer is B. Digesting DNA using deoxyribonuclease removed the transforming power of dead bacteria, demonstrating that transformation is carried out by DNA rather than proteins or RNA.