A group of researchers transformed E. coli to express dsRNA that matched a transcription factor, eaf-1. They then fed these E. coli to C. elegans worms. When the researchers examined the C. elegans, they found that they had fewer offspring and were smaller individuals, with similar characteristics to C. elegans in which eaf-1 had been knocked out. The students suggested several hypotheses based on these observations about how RNAi worked: The dsRNA inhibited gene transcription. The dsRNA inhibited mRNA processing. The dsRNA inhibited translation of mRNA into protein. The dsRNA inhibited protein folding. The researchers then performed a series of experiments to determine which hypothesis was correct. The C. elegans were found to be transcribing eaf-1 into mRNA, but not producing eaf-1 protein. When the students directly injected C. elegans with dsRNA and tracked tagged mRNA, they found the mature mRNA was degraded in the cytoplasm, and ribosomes were not binding to it. Which hypothesis is supported by these observations