When a solution composed of bacteria and infectious virions are mixed and spread on an agar plate, ________ form where viruses lyse the host cells.
A) insertion sequences
B) plaques
C) prophages
D) colonies

Question

Quizplus · Accepted Answer

Plaques are formed when the bacteriophages (infectious virions) infect and lyse the host bacterial cells, forming clear zones or areas on the agar plate. This method is commonly used to quantify the number of bacteria or phages in a sample. Insertion sequences are short DNA sequences that can move from one position to another within the genome, but they are not related to plaque formation. Prophages are viral DNA segments that integrate into the bacterial genome and are replicated with it, but they do not form plaques on an agar plate. Colonies indicate the growth of a bacterial colony on an agar plate, but they are not formed by the lysis of host cells by viruses.

When a Solution Composed of Bacteria and Infectious Virions Are