Class 12 · Molecular Basis of Inheritance

Taylor's Radioactive Thymidine Experiment — NEET Biology

✅ Asked in NEET 2024
📖 NCERT Source

Very similar experiments involving use of radioactive thymidine to detect distribution of newly synthesised DNA in the chromosomes was performed on Vicia faba (faba beans) by Taylor and colleagues in 1958. The experiments proved that the DNA in chromosomes also replicate semiconservatively.

NCERT Biology · Class 12 · Chapter 5 · Paragraph 64
How NTA Uses This Concept

Taylor's 1958 experiments used radioactive thymidine (³H-thymidine) on Vicia faba chromosomes to prove that DNA replication is semiconservative, just like Meselson-Stahl showed in bacteria. NEET traps: students confuse Taylor's work with Meselson-Stahl (different organisms, same conclusion), or forget that radioactive thymidine specifically labels newly synthesized DNA strands. Remember: Taylor tracked DNA distribution across generations in plant cells, confirming each new DNA molecule contains one original strand and one newly synthesized strand. This concept appears frequently because it's a classic experimental proof of the semiconservative model across different organisms.

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This paragraph was tested 2 times in NEET.

Q1 of 2NEET 2024

Which experimental material was used by Taylor and colleagues to prove that DNA in chromosomes replicates semiconservatively?

Q2 of 2NEET 2016

Taylor proved semiconservative chromosome replication in: (NEET 2016 Phase 2)

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