Related Experiment Video
Updated: Jun 22, 2026

Gene-therapy Inspired Polycation Coating for Protection of DNA Origami Nanostructures
Published on: January 19, 2019
Influence of polyelectrolyte on DNA-RecA nucleoprotein filaments: poly-L-lysine used as a model
Cunlan Guo1, Gaiping Li, Zhelin Liu
1State Key Laboratory of Electroanalytical Chemistry, Changchun Institute of Applied Chemistry, Chinese Academy of Sciences, Graduate School of the Chinese Academy of Sciences, Changchun, Jilin 130022, PR China.
Abstract:
RecA of Escherichia coli and its active nucleoprotein filaments with DNA are important for the genomic integrity and the genetic diversity. The formation of the DNA-RecA nucleoprotein filaments is a complex multiple-step process and can be affected by many factors. In this work, the effects of poly-L-lysine (PLL) on the DNA-RecA nucleoprotein filaments are investigated in vitro by agarose gel electrophoresis and atomic force microscopy (AFM). The observed morphologies vary with the concentration, the length, and the addition order of PLL. These distinctions provide information for the conformation change of DNA and the binding sites of RecA protein in the formation process of nucleoprotein filaments. Besides that, the comparison displays the effect of cationic polyelectrolyte on both inhibition and destabilization of the DNA-RecA nucleoprotein filaments. The current study provides valuable insights for pharmacologic studies and gene delivery.
Related Concept Videos
Nucleic Acid Structure
DNA Structure
DNA has a double-helix structure. The...
The Replisome
The synthesis of the leading and lagging strands is a highly coordinated process. To explain this, the “Trombone model” was proposed by Bruce Alberts in 1980. The DNA loop formation starts when a primer is synthesized on the parent lagging strand. The loop grows with the...
DNA as a Genetic Template
Nucleosome Remodeling
Nucleosome remodeling complex
Eukaryotic cells have specialized enzymes called ATP-dependent nucleosome remodeling enzymes. These enzymes...
The Nucleosome
DNA is wound twice around a protein complex called histone core, that consist of 8 histone proteins. This complex...

