Surface-Adsorbed Long G-Quadruplex Nanowires Formed by G:C Linkages

G-quadruplexes connected into long, continuous nanostructures termed G-wires show properties superior to dsDNA when applied in nanotechnology. Using AFM imaging, we systematically studied surface adsorption of a set of G-rich oligonucleotides with GC-termini for their ability to form long G-wires through G:C pairing. We investigated the effects of increasing sequence length, the type of nucleotide in the side loops, and removal of the CG-3' terminus. We found that sequences with adenine in the side loops most readily form G-wires. The role of magnesium as an efficient surface-anchoring ion was also confirmed. Conversely, as resolved from dynamic light scattering measurements, magnesium had no ability to promote G-quadruplex formation in solution. These insights may help in selecting prosperous candidates for construction of G-quadruplex based nanowires and to explore them for their electronic properties.