Question

Prokaryotes can be distinguished from eukaryotes as they lack
A. RNA
B. Ribosomes
C. Gene discontinuity
D. Unique DNA sequences

Answer 1

Hint: The eukaryotic DNA contains both introns and exons. These are the nucleotide sequences present in a gene. The introns in eukaryotic DNA are removed by RNA splicing as the RNA matures. This presence of introns and exons is a characteristic of eukaryotes.

Complete answer:
Prokaryotic cells are the cells that do not contain any organelles. These cells lack membrane-bound structures. These cells do not contain a definite nucleus and due to this reason, gene discontinuity is being observed in the prokaryotic cells. In a DNA or RNA sequence, a gene contains two regions, a coding, and a non-coding region i.e. exons and introns respectively. The coding information is split up between these two regions. Exons are separated from each other by the non-coding regions known as the introns. Several genes present in genetic sequences are discontinuous. Prokaryotes only contain exons, while eukaryotes contain both exons and introns. Thus, in eukaryotic cells, the introns are removed from the newly synthesized mRNA strand when the mRNA is transcribed from the DNA. The exons which are the coding sequences are then joined together.
So, the correct answer is option C.

Note: The prokaryotes have a prokaryotic cytoskeleton which is more primitive than the cytoskeleton of eukaryotes. In addition to the homologs of actin and tubulin, it also contains the helically arranged building-block of the flagellum which is made up of a protein known as flagellin.