The sentence states that the team of research scientists will not know whether the procedure for reversing damage to individual genes was successful IF the scientists do not get access to the advanced optical technology at the university.

Option A - correct
It uses the correct words to express the intended meaning of the sentence appropriately.

Option B - incorrect
Using 'whether or not," in a sentence is redundant because whether itself already contains two separate conditions. So, this option is not acceptable.

Option C - incorrect
This is incorrect because it uses 'if' at the beginning of the underlined clause to explain the dilemma, which is that of the scientists knowing if the procedure was successful.

Option D - incorrect
The sentence in this option makes the same mistake as option C. It uses 'if' at the beginning of the underlined clause to explain the dilemma which is that of the scientists knowing if the procedure was successful.

Option E - incorrect
This option is not parallel as it has the same issue as option C. Also, it uses 'whether' to explain a condition which is the scientists getting technology from the University to confirm if the procedure is successful. This is not in line with the intended meaning of the sentence.