Before the discovery of DNA, the hereditary material was thought to be made of proteins and not nucleic acids because
A) nucleic acids are made up of 20 different bases, whereas proteins are made up of only five amino acids.
B) protein subunits can combine to form larger proteins.
C) proteins seemed to be much more chemically diverse.
D) proteins can be enzymes.
E) None of the above

Question

Quizplus · Accepted Answer

Proteins were thought to be the hereditary material because they were much more chemically diverse than nucleic acids. At the time, it was believed that the level of complexity observed in organisms required a complex molecule like a protein to store genetic information. It wasn't until DNA was discovered to be responsible for the transformation of bacteria that it became clear that nucleic acids, not proteins, held the genetic information.

Before the Discovery of DNA, the Hereditary Material Was Thought