Molecular Switching Behavior in Isosteric DNA Base Pairs

The structures and proton‐coupled behavior of adenine–thymine (A‐T) and a modified base pair containing a thymine isostere, adenine–difluorotoluene (A‐F), are studied in different solvents by dispersion‐corrected density functional theory. The stability of the canonical Watson–Crick base pair and the mismatched pair in various solvents with low and high dielectric constants is analyzed. It is demonstrated that A‐F base pairing is favored in solvents with low dielectric constant. The stabilization and conformational changes induced by protonation are also analyzed for the natural as well as the mismatched base pair. DNA sequences capable of changing their sequence conformation on protonation are used in the construction of pH‐based molecular switches. An acidic medium has a profound influence in stabilizing the isostere base pair. Such a large gain in stability on protonation leads to an interesting pH‐controlled molecular switch, which can be incorporated in a natural DNA tract.     

The Structural Basis for Processing of Unnatural Base Pairs by DNA Polymerases

Unnatural base pairs (UBPs) greatly increase the diversity of DNA and RNA, furthering their broad range of molecular biological and biotechnological approaches. Different candidates have been developed whereby alternative hydrogen-bonding patterns and hydrophobic and packing interactions have turned out to be the most promising base-pairing concepts to date. The key in many applications is the highly efficient and selective acceptance of artificial base pairs by DNA polymerases, which enables amplification of the modified DNA. In this Review, computational as well as experimental studies that were performed to characterize the pairing behavior of UBPs in free duplex DNA or bound to the active site of KlenTaq DNA polymerase are highlighted. The structural studies, on the one hand, elucidate how base pairs lacking hydrogen bonds are accepted by these enzymes and, on the other hand, highlight the influence of one or several consecutive UBPs on the structure of a DNA double helix. Understanding these concepts facilitates optimization of future UBPs for the manifold fields of applications.     

Glucose–Nucleobase Pseudo Base Pairs: Biomolecular Interactions within DNA

Noncovalent forces rule the interactions between biomolecules. Inspired by a biomolecular interaction found in aminoglycoside–RNA recognition, glucose‐nucleobase pairs have been examined. Deoxyoligonucleotides with a 6‐deoxyglucose insertion are able to hybridize with their complementary strand, thus exhibiting a preference for purine nucleobases. Although the resulting double helices are less stable than natural ones, they present only minor local distortions. 6‐Deoxyglucose stays fully integrated in the double helix and its OH groups form two hydrogen bonds with the opposing guanine. This 6‐deoxyglucose‐guanine pair closely resembles a purine‐pyrimidine geometry. Quantum chemical calculations indicate that glucose‐purine pairs are as stable as a natural T‐A pair.     

Electronic Structures and Spectra of the Bases and Base Pairs of Nucleic Acids

The present paper covers electronic structures and spectra of the bases and the base pairs of nucleic acids calculated by using the INDO/S method. For free bases we give the energy levels of ground states and transition energies of low-lying excited states and discuss the band characters. The results indicate that the calculated spectra are in good agreement with experimental values. On the other hand, our calculations for A-T and G-C pairs are very beneficial to understanding hydrogen bond properties of these pairs.     

Scaled in Cartesian Coordinates Ab Initio Molecular Force Fields of DNA Bases: Application to Canonical Pairs

The model of Regularized Quantum Mechanical Force Field (RQMFF) was applied to the joint treatment of ab initio and experimental vibrational data of the four primary nucleobases using a new algorithm based on the scaling procedure in Cartesian coordinates. The matrix of scaling factors in Cartesian coordinates for the considered molecules includes diagonal elements for all atoms of the molecule and off-diagonal elements for bonded atoms and for some non-bonded atoms (1–3 and some 1–4 interactions). The choice of the model is based on the results of the second-order perturbation analysis of the Fock matrix for uncoupled interactions using the Natural Bond Orbital (NBO) analysis. The scaling factors obtained within this model as a result of solving the inverse problem (regularized Cartesian scale factors) of adenine, cytosine, guanine, and thymine molecules were used to correct the Hessians of the canonical base pairs: adenine–thymine and cytosine–guanine. The proposed procedure is based on the block structure of the scaling matrix for molecular entities with non-covalent interactions, as in the case of DNA base pairs. It allows avoiding introducing internal coordinates (or coordinates of symmetry, local symmetry, etc.) when scaling the force field of a compound of a complex structure with non-covalent H-bonds.     

Anharmonic Vibrational Frequencies of Water Borane and Associated Molecules

Water borane (BH3OH2) and borinic acid (BH2OH) have been proposed as intermediates along the pathway of hydrogen generation from simple reactants: water and borane. However, the vibrational spectra for neither water borane nor borinic acid has been investigaged experimentally due to the difficulty of isolating them in the gas phase, making accurate quantum chemical predictions for such properties the most viable means of their determination. This work presents theoretical predictions of the full rotational and fundamental vibrational spectra of these two potentially application-rich molecules using quartic force fields at the CCSD(T)-F12b/cc-pCVTZ-F12 level with additional corrections included for the effects of scalar relativity. This computational scheme is further benchmarked against the available gas-phase experimental data for the related borane and HBO molecules. The differences are found to be within 3 cm−1 for the fundamental vibrational frequencies and as close as 15 MHz in the B0 and C0 principal rotational constants. Both BH2OH and BH3OH2 have multiple vibrational modes with intensities greater than 100 km mol−1, namely ν2 and ν4 in BH2OH, and ν1, ν3, ν4, ν9, and ν13 in BH3OH2. Finally, BH3OH2 has a large dipole moment of 4.24 D, which should enable it to be observable by rotational spectroscopy, as well.     

Acceleration of Long‐Range Photoinduced Electron Transfer through DNA by Hydroxyquinolines as Artificial Base Pairs

The C‐nucleoside based on the hydroxyquinoline ligand (Hq) is complementary to itself and forms stable Hq–Hq pairs in double‐stranded DNA. These artificial Hq–Hq pairs may serve as artificial electron carriers for long‐range photoinduced electron transfer in DNA, as elucidated by a combination of gel electrophoretic analysis of irradiated samples and time‐resolved transient absorption spectroscopy. For this study, the Hq–Hq pair was combined with a DNA‐based donor–acceptor system consisting of 6‐N,N‐dimethylaminopyrene conjugated to 2′‐deoxyuridine as photoinducible electron donor, and methyl viologen attached to the 2′‐position of uridine as electron acceptor. The Hq radical anion was identified in the time‐resolved measurements and strand cleavage products support its role as an intermediate charge carrier. Hence, the Hq–Hq pair significantly enhances the electron hopping capability of DNA compared to natural DNA bases over long distances while keeping the self‐assembly properties as the most attractive feature of DNA as a supramolecular architecture.     

核酸碱基的非谐性振动:正规及错配碱基对的一维和二维红外光谱及其结构基础

用量子化学计算研究了正规Watson-Crick碱基对和四例典型的错配碱基对.对碱基单体和二聚体进行了详细的非谐性频率分析,以揭示其结构方面的一些振动特征.研究发现这些振动特征能在模拟的一维和二维红外光谱中很好地表现出来.利用势能分布研究了所选简正模式的离域化程度,发现从孤立的碱基单体到参与氢键的二聚体,模式的离域化程度变化很大;同时,这些模式的非谐性常数也发生了相应的改变.以人们通常认为的位于红外光谱中6-μm波长区域的羰基伸缩模式为例进行了探讨.     

Ultrafast Vibrational Dynamics and Local Interactions of Hydrated DNA

Biochemical processes occur mainly in aqueous environments, where interactions with water molecules play a key role for both the structure and function of biomolecules. Deoxyribonucleic acid (DNA), the basic carrier of genetic information, is characterized by an equilibrium double helix structure which is held together by intermolecular hydrogen bonds between base pairs and hydrated by an environment of water molecules with fluctuating hydrogen bonds. Basic vibrational motions of hydrated DNA and the fastest changes in the DNA–water interactions and hydration geometries occur in less than 1 ps. These processes can be accessed by mapping the vibrational dynamics of DNA and water in a time‐resolved way by nonlinear ultrafast vibrational spectroscopy. Recent studies provide a detailed understanding of DNA vibrations and their dynamics, and give insight into nonequilibrium properties and structures of hydrated DNA.     

Influence of the Absolute Configuration of NPE‐Caged Cytosine on DNA Single Base Pair Stability

Photolabile protecting groups are a versatile tool to trigger reactions by light irradiation. In this study, we have investigated the influence of the absolute configuration of the 1‐(2‐nitrophenyl)ethyl (NPE) cage group on a 15‐base‐pair duplex DNA. Using UV melting, we determined the global stability of the unmodified and the selectively (S)‐ and (R)‐NPE‐modified DNA sequences, respectively. We observe a differently destabilizing effect for the two NPE stereoisomers on the global stability. Analysis of the temperature dependence of imino proton exchange rates measured by NMR spectroscopy reveals that this effect can be attributed to decreased base pair stabilities of the caged and the 3′‐neighbouring base pair, respectively. Furthermore, our NMR based structural models of the modified duplexes provide a structural basis for the distinct effect of the (S)‐ and the (R)‐NPE group.     

Thread Insertion of a Bis(dipyridophenazine) Diruthenium Complex into the DNA Double Helix by the Extrusion of AT Base Pairs and Cross‐Linking of DNA Duplexes

The crystal structure of the Δ,Δ enantiomer of the binuclear “light‐switch” ruthenium complex [μ‐(11,11′‐bidppz)(1,10‐phenanthroline)₄ Ru₂]⁴⁺ bound to the oligonucleotide d(CGTACG) shows that one dppz moiety of the dumbbell‐like compound inserts into the DNA stack through the extrusion of an AT base pair. The second dppz moiety recruits a neighboring DNA molecule, and the complex thus cross‐links two adjacent duplexes by bridging their major grooves.     

Ultraviolet Absorption Induces Hydrogen‐Atom Transfer in G⋅C Watson–Crick DNA Base Pairs in Solution

Ultrafast deactivation pathways bestow photostability on nucleobases and hence preserve the structural integrity of DNA following absorption of ultraviolet (UV) radiation. One controversial recovery mechanism proposed to account for this photostability involves electron‐driven proton transfer (EDPT) in Watson–Crick base pairs. The first direct observation is reported of the EDPT process after UV excitation of individual guanine–cytosine (G?C) Watson–Crick base pairs by ultrafast time‐resolved UV/visible and mid‐infrared spectroscopy. The formation of an intermediate biradical species (G[?H]?C[+H]) with a lifetime of 2.9 ps was tracked. The majority of these biradicals return to the original G?C Watson–Crick pairs, but up to 10 % of the initially excited molecules instead form a stable photoproduct G*?C* that has undergone double hydrogen‐atom transfer. The observation of these sequential EDPT mechanisms across intermolecular hydrogen bonds confirms an important and long debated pathway for the deactivation of photoexcited base pairs, with possible implications for the UV photochemistry of DNA.     

Efficient Replication Bypass of Size‐Expanded DNA Base Pairs in Bacterial Cells

Supersize me! Size‐expanded DNA bases (xDNA) are able to encode natural DNA sequences in replication. In vitro experiments with a DNA polymerase show nucleotide incorporation opposite the xDNA bases with correct pairing. In vivo experiments using E. coli show that two xDNA bases (xA and xC, see picture) encode the correct replication partners.

     

碳酸二甲酯在固体碱上吸附和活化的原位红外光谱研究

采用原位红外技术研究了碳酸二甲酯在氧化镁、氟化镁、镁铝复合氧化物和氟改性的镁铝复合氧化物4种固体碱表面上的吸附和活化行为。结果表明:碳酸二甲酯以单、双齿两种形态吸附于固体碱的表面,双齿吸附的比单齿吸附的更易活化。碳酸二甲酯吸附于氧化镁和镁铝复合氧化物上活化生成甲氧基,吸附于氟化镁上活化生成甲氟基;而吸附于氟改性的镁铝复合氧化物上优先活化生成甲氟基,随着吸附表面温度的升高,逐渐有甲氧基生成,说明氟改性的镁铝复合氧化物是一种优良的甲基化反应催化剂。     

Watson–Crick Base Pairing Controls Excited‐State Decay in Natural DNA

Excited‐state dynamics are essential to understanding the formation of DNA lesions induced by UV light. By using femtosecond IR spectroscopy, it was possible to determine the lifetimes of the excited states of all four bases in the double‐stranded environment of natural DNA. After UV excitation of the DNA duplex, we detected a concerted decay of base pairs connected by Watson–Crick hydrogen bonds. A comparison of single‐ and double‐stranded DNA showed that the reactive charge‐transfer states formed in the single strands are suppressed by base pairing in the duplex. The strong influence of the Watson–Crick hydrogen bonds indicates that proton transfer opens an efficient decay path in the duplex that prohibits the formation or reduces the lifetime of reactive charge‐transfer states.     

Base pairing patterns of DNA base lesion spiroiminodihydantoin: A DFT study

The DNA base lesion spiroiminodihydantoin (Sp) is produced in biological systems endogenously and can cause mutation and cancer. It is considered to be more mutagenic and deleterious than 8‐oxoguanine and other oxidized guanine products such as guanidinohydantoin (Gh) and imidazolone. In this work, the base pairing patterns of Sp with each of the normal nucleic acid bases of DNA have been investigated thoroughly using the B3LYP, M06‐2X, and wB97X‐D functionals of density functional theory in conjunction with the aug‐cc‐pVDZ basis set. It is found that the magnitudes of interaction energies between the bases and Sp follow the order: Sp‐guanine >> Sp‐cytosine > Sp‐adenine > Sp‐thymine. The strong Sp‐guanine abnormal base pairing may be the main cause of the observed mutagenicity of Sp. © 2013 Wiley Periodicals, Inc.     

DNA碱基与高氯酸根共吸附行为的表面增强拉曼光谱研究

共吸附有助于实现弱吸附分子或离子的高灵敏表面增强拉曼光谱(SERS)检测.本文研究了四种脱氧核糖核酸(DNA)碱基,即腺嘌呤、鸟嘌呤、胞嘧啶、胸腺嘧啶与高氯酸根(ClO4-)在金纳米粒子表面的共吸附行为,并考察了吸附能力、电位、共存阴离子等因素的影响.研究发现四种碱基在质子化后都可以与ClO4-发生共吸附,但在金表面吸附能力弱的胸腺嘧啶与ClO4-共吸附所获得的ClO4-信号最弱.另外,负电位下电极的排斥作用,以及较正电位下基底SERS增强效应减小等因素都会导致ClO4-信号衰减.此外,Cl-、NO3-、SO24-等阴离子可以与ClO4-发生可逆动态竞争共吸附,同时引起ClO4-信号减弱.以上结果将为提高共吸附法检测弱吸附离子的灵敏度提供重要参考.     

Vibrational and Structural Dynamics of Mn(CO)5Br and Re(CO)5Br Examined Using Nonlinear Infrared Spectroscopy

Vibrational and structural dynamics of two transition metal carbonyl complexes, Mn(CO)₅Br and Re(CO)₅Br were examined in DMSO, using ultrafast infrared pump-probe spectroscopy, steady-state linear infrared spectroscopy and quantum chemistry computations. Two carbonyl stretching vibrational modes (a low-frequency A₁ mode and two high-frequency degenerate E modes) were used as vibrational probes. Central metal effect on the CO bond order and force constant was responsible for a larger E-A₁ frequency separation and a generally more red-shifted E and A₁ peaks in the Re complex than in the Mn complex. A generally broader spectral width for the A₁ mode than the E mode is believed to be partially due to vibrational lifetime effect. Vibrational mode-dependent diagonal anharmonicity was observed in transient infrared spectra, with a generally smaller anharmonicity found for the E mode in both the Mn and Re complexes.     

O6-鸟嘌呤和O4-胸腺嘧啶甲基化与DNA碱基异常氢键作用的理论研究

用密度泛函B3LYP方法在6-311＋G**基组水平上对顺(cis-)、反式(anti-)O⁶-甲基鸟嘌呤(O⁶-MeG)和O⁴-甲基胸腺嘧啶(O⁴-MeT)与DNA碱基(腺嘌呤A、鸟嘌呤G)的非Watson-Crick氢键二聚体进行了优化. 在MP2/cc-pVXZ (X＝D,T)//B3LYP/6-311＋G**水平上, 采用完全基组外推方法校正了氢键二聚体的相互作用能, 并用完全均衡校正法(CP)校正了基组重叠误差(BSSE). 此外, 在B3LYP/6-311＋G**水平上计算了各氢键碱基对的全电子波函数, 并用分子中的原子理论(AIM)和电子密度拓扑方法分析了碱基间的弱相互作用. 计算结果显示, 甲基化使碱基对间的氢键作用模式发生了明显的扭转和不同程度的位移, 碱基间的电子密度分布和氢键作用能明显减小, 甲基化对O⁶-MeG和O⁴-MeT与DNA碱基间的氢键作用是去稳定化的, 这种影响主要来自于大体积的甲基的空间效应和给电子效应, 且对顺式的影响明显大于反式. 计算结果与文献给出的实验结论基本一致.