Question

In Kornberg's initial experiments, it was rumored that he grew E. coli in Anheuser-Busch beer vats. (Kornberg was working at Washington University in St. Louis.) Why do you think this might have been helpful to the experiment?

Short answer

Kornberg possibly chose to use Anheuser-Busch beer vats for growing E. coli during his initial experiments because the vats provided several benefits, such as a large capacity for growing considerable amounts of E. coli, a sterile and controlled environment for preventing contamination, temperature control for maintaining optimal growth conditions, and aeration for providing a continuous supply of oxygen. These factors likely contributed to successful bacterial growth and effective experiments.

Step-by-step solution

Understand the experiment environment

E. coli is a common type of bacteria that is often used in scientific experiments. To grow E. coli effectively, optimal conditions need to be maintained, such as temperature, aeration, and nutrient availability. Anheuser-Busch beer vats typically provide a controlled environment for fermenting beer, which may be helpful in maintaining similar optimal conditions for growing E. coli.

Analyze the benefits of using beer vats

The beer vats in question have the following properties that might have been helpful for Kornberg's experiments with E. coli: 1. Large size and capacity - This feature allows growing a considerable amount of E. coli cells, which can be beneficial in obtaining significant experiment results. 2. Sterile and controlled environment - Beer vats are designed to maintain a clean and contamination-free environment to ensure the quality of beer production, which can be helpful in growing E. coli without unwanted microorganisms interfering in the experiments. 3. Temperature control - The optimal growth temperature for E. coli is around 37°C (98.6°F), and beer vats usually provide a temperature control system that allows maintaining the required temperature for brewing, which can be adjusted for E. coli growth as well. 4. Aeration - Beer vats typically include an aeration system for the controlled release of gases during the fermentation process, which can serve a similar purpose for E. coli growth, as bacteria require a continuous supply of oxygen.

Conclude the reasons behind using beer vats

In conclusion, it is possible that Kornberg chose to use Anheuser-Busch beer vats for his initial experiments with E. coli due to the benefits these vats provided in terms of capacity, sterile environment, temperature control, and aeration. These factors could have contributed to successful bacterial growth, which is essential for conducting effective experiments.