Terahertz spectroscopy of oligonucleotides in aqueous solutions
Mingjie Tang1, Qing Huang2, Dongshan Wei1
1Chinese Academy of Sciences, Chongqing Institute of Green and Intelligent Technology, Chongqing Key Laboratory of Multi-Scale Manufacturing Technology, No. 266 Fangzheng Avenue, Shuitu Hi-tech Industrial Park, Shuitu Town, Beibei District, Chongqing 40071.
Abstract:
A terahertz (THz) spectroscopic study is carried out to analyze DNA mutations in a label-free manner. Three newly designed liquid sample cells are considered and the best is selected as the sample carrier for THz transmission spectroscopic analyses. Discrimination based on spectral signatures of single-base mutations on single-stranded 20 nt oligonucleotides has been shown possible experimentally. The results clearly attest the ability of this promising approach for label-free analyses of single-base mutations of DNA molecules. This study has demonstrated that the THz spectroscopic technology can be considered as a potential diagnostic tool for investigating molecular reactions, such as DNA mutations.
