Interaction of YOYO-3 with different DNA templates to form H-aggregates

Homodimeric cyanine dyes are DNA intercalators that display a large enhancement of fluorescence emission when bound to double-stranded DNA. However, other different interaction modes are possible, such as H-type molecular aggregates of the dye, templated by the nucleic acid. In this paper, we study in depth the formation of nonfluorescent H-aggregates of the cyanine homodimer YOYO-3 with two different DNA templates using absorption and both steady-state and time-resolved fluorescence spectroscopy. First, a nonfluorescent YOYO-3 H-aggregate complex was found to form in single-stranded polycytidine chains, resulting in the appearance of a new absorption band at approximately 500 nm. The specific interaction of cytosine bases suggests the involvement of the C-rich i-motif in facilitating the formation of the H-aggregate complex. Second, the interaction of YOYO-3 with double-stranded poly(A·T) tracts also led to the appearance of a new absorption band at approximately 500 nm, and hence of a different type of H-aggregate. We found that the aggregate is formed mainly in double-stranded regions with consecutive adenine bases in the same strand (and thymine bases in the complementary strand). These poly(A·T) tracts provide narrow minor grooves and enhanced electrostatic negative potential to promote the aggregation of the negatively charged cyanine. As the YOYO-3 H-aggregates are nonfluorescent, our results provide an important basis to quantitatively understand the fluorescence emission of this cyanine dye in the presence of DNA strands.