Bacteria transformed with plasmids are plated on growth medium containing ampicillin and X-gal. Blue colonies on the plate contain bacteria with a ____ plasmid, meaning the lacZ+ gene is ____.

Question

Bacteria transformed with plasmids are plated on growth medium containing ampicillin and X-gal. Blue colonies on the plate contain bacteria with a ____ plasmid, meaning the lacZ+ gene is ____. ​

Quizplus · Accepted Answer

The blue colonies indicate that the lacZ+ gene is intact, meaning the plasmid is nonrecombinant. The intact lacZ+ gene allows for the production of β-galactosidase, which cleaves X-gal to produce a blue color.

Bacteria Transformed with Plasmids Are Plated on Growth Medium Containing