Related Experiment Video
Updated: Aug 7, 2025
09:32
Stable DNA Motifs, 1D and 2D Nanostructures Constructed from Small Circular DNA Molecules
Published on: April 12, 2019
6.5K
End-ligation can dramatically stabilize i-motifs at neutral pH
Roberto El-Khoury1, Masad J Damha1
1Department of Chemistry, McGill University, Montréal, H3A0B8, Canada. masad.damha@mcgill.ca.
Chemical Communications (Cambridge, England)
|March 8, 2023
Summary
Chemical end-ligation stabilizes DNA i-motif structures at neutral pH. Combining this with specific chemical substitutions creates highly stable i-motifs, useful for drug discovery and nanotechnology applications.
Area of Science:
- DNA structural biology
- Chemical biology
- Nanotechnology
Background:
- Intramolecular i-motif DNA structures are challenging to stabilize at neutral pH and physiological temperatures.
- Developing stable i-motif structures is crucial for their potential applications in various fields.
Purpose of the Study:
- To demonstrate the stabilization of intramolecular i-motif DNA structures using chemical end-ligation.
- To achieve unprecedented thermal stability in i-motif structures at neutral pH.
Main Methods:
- Chemical end-ligation of DNA strands to form intramolecular i-motifs.
- Incorporation of 2'-deoxy-2'-fluoroarabinocytidine substitutions.
- Thermal stability measurements at neutral pH.
Main Results:
- Chemical end-ligation successfully stabilized i-motif structures at both acidic and neutral pH.
- A combination of end-ligation and 2'-deoxy-2'-fluoroarabinocytidine substitutions yielded an i-motif with a thermal stability of 54 °C at neutral pH.
- The stabilized i-motifs exhibited enhanced thermal resilience.
Conclusions:
- Chemical end-ligation is an effective strategy for stabilizing i-motif DNA structures.
- The developed stabilized i-motifs have potential applications in high-throughput screening for ligands and proteins.
- These findings open avenues for advanced applications in nanotechnology.
Related Concept Videos
01:11Restriction Enzymes
31.0K
Restriction enzymes are bacterial enzymes used to cut DNA in a sequence-specific manner. To cleave DNA, they bind to specific palindromic sequences called restriction sites. Such palindromic DNA sequences or inverted repeats are commonly found in regions of functional significance, such as the origin of replication, gene operator sites, and regions containing transcription termination signals.
The host bacteria protect their own genomic DNA from these enzymes by methylating these sites. Some...
The host bacteria protect their own genomic DNA from these enzymes by methylating these sites. Some...
31.0K
01:20Mismatch Repair
5.0K
Organisms are capable of detecting and fixing nucleotide mismatches that occur during DNA replication. This sophisticated process requires identifying the new strand and replacing the erroneous bases with correct nucleotides. Mismatch repair is coordinated by many proteins in both prokaryotes and eukaryotes.
The Mutator Protein Family Plays a Key Role in DNA Mismatch Repair
The human genome has more than 3 billion base pairs of DNA per cell. Prior to cell division, that vast amount of genetic...
The Mutator Protein Family Plays a Key Role in DNA Mismatch Repair
The human genome has more than 3 billion base pairs of DNA per cell. Prior to cell division, that vast amount of genetic...
5.0K
02:31Homologous Recombination
50.8K
The basic reaction of homologous recombination (HR) involves two chromatids that contain DNA sequences sharing a significant stretch of identity. One of these sequences uses a strand from another as a template to synthesize DNA in an enzyme-catalyzed reaction. The final product is a novel amalgamation of the two substrates. To ensure an accurate recombination of sequences, HR is restricted to the S and G2 phases of the cell cycle. At these stages, the DNA has been replicated already and the...
50.8K