1928 Frederick Griffith wanted to know how bacteria made people sick.

. Preformed two experiments using two different types of bacteria. A. one that produces pneumonia B. one that is harmless.

 First experiment: Griffith killed the pneumonia bacteria and injected it into lab mice. Result: They did not die

 Second experiment, Griffith mixed the killed bacteria with the second bacteria, and injected it into lab mice. The mice died

 Griffith thought the bacteria was producing a poison but the second test proved him wrong. Somehow the heat killed bacteria passed on their ability to the harmless bacteria. Griffith called this process; transformation

 1944 Group of biologists lead by Oswald Avery repeated Griffiths experiments. Then made a extract from the heat- killed bacteria and carefully treated the extract with enzymes that destroyed proteins, lipids, carbohydrates, and other molecules including the nucleic acid RNA.

 Transformation still occurred. Avery repeated the experiment. This time using enzymes that would break down DNA. Transformation did NOT occur.

 Nucleic acid DNA stores and transmits the genetic information from one generation of an organism to the next.

 1952 Alfred Hershey and Martha Chase teamed up to study viruses. Viruses are nonliving particles smaller than a cell that can infect living organisms.

 One type of bacteria that infects bacteria is called Bacteriophage

T4 Bacteriophage

 Bacteriophages are made of DNA and RNA core with a coat of protein It attaches to the surface of bacteria and injects its genetic material into the bacteria. It acts as a hatchery and allows the genes to act and reproduce many new bacteriophages. The cells splits open and hundreds of new viruses burst out.

Electron Micrograph of Bacteriophages invading a bacteria.

 Hershey and Chase

 The human body produces billions of new cells every day. Before it undergoes cell division, copies of the genetic information must occur first. Genetic information is located in the cells nucleus DNA

 In just 6-8 hours the entire genome is copied. To accomplish this, DNA replication begins at multiple locations along each chromosome.