Why is It Important to Have an Antibiotic Resistance Gene

Question

Why is it important to have an antibiotic resistance gene in the cloning plasmid?
A) It provides a way for researchers to sort the bacteria that have the cloning plasmid from the bacteria that do not have the cloning plasmid.
B) It provides a way to sort bacteria that have the gene of interest from the bacteria that have just an "empty" cloning plasmid.
C) It makes the bacteria resistant to the antibiotic.
D) It aids scientists in developing new antibiotic treatments.

Accepted Answer

A) The antibiotic resistance gene in a cloning plasmid allows researchers to apply an antibiotic to a culture of bacteria. Only the bacteria that have successfully taken up the plasmid (which includes the antibiotic resistance gene) will survive, thus enabling the researchers to distinguish these from those that did not take up the plasmid.