Your friend is trying to learn about how to kill bacteria. She reads that preservatives such as citric acid are added to foods because the acidic environment kills bacteria by denaturing their proteins. She thinks this sounds like a lot of scientific jargon and asks you what it means. How can you explain it in simpler terms?
A) The acid causes the cells to swell and burst open, also known as denaturation.
B) Denaturing their proteins means that the proteins in bacteria are converted into carbohydrates.
C) Denaturing refers to the fact that the bacterial cells divide too quickly and die.
D) Denaturing means that the proteins of the bacteria lose their structure and canʹt function, so the bacteria die.

Question

Quizplus · Accepted Answer

Denaturing proteins means that the proteins lose their natural shape and, as a result, their ability to function. In the context of bacteria, when their proteins are denatured, the bacteria cannot survive because their essential processes are disrupted.

Your Friend Is Trying to Learn About How to Kill