基于链置换循环无标记检测端立酶RNA的荧光法

以氧化石墨烯(GO)作为DNA载体和荧光猝灭剂,SYBRGreen Ⅰ(SGⅠ)为荧光信号探针,发夹核酸探针为分子识别探针,基于目标物启动的发夹核酸探针链置换循环反应,建立了一种利用荧光共振能量转移和链置换循环放大技术检测端粒酶RNA (hTR)的荧光新方法.发夹核酸探针hpDNA1和hpDNA2吸附在GO表面,嵌插在发夹DNA探针茎部的SG Ⅰ的荧光信号被GO猝灭.当人工合成的目标物(T1)存在时,T1与hpDNA1杂交打开hpDNA1的茎-环结构而引发hpDNA2与T1之间的链置换循环反应,由此累积产生大量的hpDNA1/hpDNA2杂交双链.刚性的双链DNA脱离GO表面,导致所嵌插的SG Ⅰ产生较强的荧光信号.基于荧光信号的变化,可定量检测0.2～50 nmoL/L的T1,检出限为90 pmol/L.该方法为端粒酶RNA检测提供了一种高灵敏、高特异性且无需标记的荧光新途径.     

A Chimeric DNA/RNA Antiparallel Quadruplex with Improved Stability

Nucleic acid quadruplexes are proposed to play a role in the regulation of gene expression, are often present in aptamers selected for specific binding functions and have potential applications in medicine and biotechnology. Therefore, understanding their structure and thermodynamic properties and designing highly stable quadruplexes is desirable for a variety of applications. Here, we evaluate DNA→RNA substitutions in the context of a monomolecular, antiparallel quadruplex, the thrombin-binding aptamer (TBA, GGTTGGTGTGGTTGG) in the presence of either K⁺ or Sr²⁺. TBA predominantly folds into a chair-type configuration containing two G-tetrads, with G residues in both syn and anti conformation. All chimeras with DNA→RNA substitutions (G→g) at G residues requiring the syn conformation demonstrated strong destabilization. In contrast, G→g substitutions at Gs with anti conformation increased stability without affecting the monomolecular chair-type topology. None of the DNA→RNA substitutions in loop positions affected the quadruplex topology; however, these substitutions varied widely in their stabilizing or destabilizing effects in an unpredictable manner. This analysis allowed us to design a chimeric DNA/RNA TBA construct that demonstrated substantially improved stability relative to the all-DNA construct. These results have implications for a variety of quadruplex-based applications including for the design of dynamic nanomachines.     

Base dependent pyrrolidine ring pucker in aep-PNA monomers: NMR and PSEUROT analysis

The aep-PNA is a chiral and cyclic PNA analogue, which has a stronger and base dependent binding affinity with complementary DNA. To understand the base dependent properties at monomer level, the structural studies of aep-PNA-(T/C/A) monomers have been carried out focussing on the conformational analysis of pyrrolidine ring pucker in aep-PNA by ¹H NMR and the coupling constant data fitted into PSEUROT software. The results indicate that the type of pyrrolidine pucker depends on the electronic nature of substituent, implying the effect of pyrimidine or purine substituents in determining the ring pucker in monomers. This may consequently influence the aep-PNA oligomer conformation. Since pyrrolidine nucleic acids have emerged as an important class of PNA analogues, present results may have importance for their future development.     

Cation−π interactions in high resolution protein−RNA complex crystal structures

In this work, we have analyzed the influence of cation–π interactions to the stability of 59 high resolution protein–RNA complex crystal structures. The total number of Lys and Arg are similar in the dataset as well as the number of their interactions. On the other hand, the aromatic chains of purines are exhibiting more cation–π interactions than pyrimidines. 35% of the total interactions in the dataset are involved in the formation of multiple cation–π interactions. The multiple cation–π interactions have been conserved more than the single interactions. The analysis of the geometry of the cation–π interactions has revealed that the average distance (d) value falls into distinct ranges corresponding to the multiple (4.28 Å) and single (5.50 Å) cation–π interactions. The G–Arg pair has the strongest interaction energy of −3.68 kcal mol⁻¹ among all the possible pairs of amino acids and bases. Further, we found that the cation–π interactions due to five-membered rings of A and G are stronger than that with the atoms in six-membered rings. 8.7% stabilizing residues are involved in building cation–π interactions with the nucleic bases. There are three types of structural motifs significantly over-represented in protein–RNA interfaces: beta-turn-ir, niche-4r and st-staple. Tetraloops and kink-turns are the most abundant RNA motifs in protein–RNA interfaces. Amino acids deployed in the protein–RNA interfaces are deposited in helices, sheets and coils. Arg and Lys, involved in cation–π interactions, prefer to be in the solvent exposed surface. The results from this study might be used for structure–based prediction and as scaffolds for future protein–RNA complex design.     

Design and synthesis of artificial ribonucleases based on 1,4-diazabicyclo[2.2.2]octane and imidazole

The review surveys the results of our studies devoted to the design of highly efficient catalysts of hydrolysis of the phosphodiester bonds in RNA. These catalysts contain the imidazole residue in the catalytic domain, one or several bis-quaternized rings of 1,4-diazabicyclo[2.2.2]octane as a polycationic RNA-binding domain, and a lipophilic radical. A versatile approach to artificial ribonucleases of this type was proposed, which allows one to vary not only the number of positive charges in the RNA-binding domain, the structure of the catalytic site, and their mutual arrangement but also the domain structure of the molecule as a whole. Analysis of the catalytic properties of the synthesized constructs makes it possible to optimize the domain structure and the geometry of the molecule ensuring its maximum ribonuclease activity.     

Oxidation of guanines in the iron-responsive element RNA: similar structures from chemical modification and recent NMR studies

Background: The translation or stability of the mRNAs from ferritin, m-aconitase, erythroid aminoevulinate synthase and the transferrin receptor is controlled by the binding of two iron regulatory proteins to a family of hairpin-forming RNA sequences called iron-responsive elements (IREs). The determination of higher-solution nuclear magnetic resonance (NMR) structures of IRE variants suggests an unusual hexaloop structure, leading to an intra-loop G-C base pair and a highly exposed loop guanine, and a special internal loop/bulge in the ferritin IRE involving a shift in base pairing not predicted with standard algorithms.Results: Cleavage of synthetic 55- and 30-mer RNA oligonucleotides corresponding to the ferritin IRE with complexes based on oxoruthenium(IV) shows enhanced reactivity at a hexaloop guanine and at a guanine adjacent to the internal loop/bulge with strong protection at a guanine in the internal loop/bulge. These results are consistent with the recent NMR structures. The synthetic 55-mer RNA binds the iron-regulatory protein from rabbit reticulocyte lysates. The DNA analogs of the 55- and 30-mers do not show the same reactivity pattern.Conclusions: The chemical reactivity of the guanines in the ferritin IRE towards oxoruthenium(IV) supports the published NMR structures and the known oxidation chemistry of the metal complexes, The results constitute progress towards developing stand-alone chemical nucleases that reveal significant structural properties and provide results that can ultimately be used to constrain molecular modeling.     

Statistical theory of force-induced unzipping of DNA

The unzipping transition under the influence of external force of a dsDNA molecule has been studied using the Peyrard-Bishop Hamiltonian. The critical force F_c(T) for unzipping calculated in the constant force ensemble is found to depend on the potential parameter k which measures the stiffness associated with a single strand of DNA and on D, the well depth of the on-site potential representing the strength of hydrogen bonds in a base pair. The dependence on temperature of F_c(T) is found to be (T_D - T)^1/2 (T_D being the thermal denaturation temperature) with F_c(T_D) = 0 and F_c(0) = . We used the constant extension ensemble to calculate the average force F(y) required to stretch a base pair a y distance apart. The value of F(y) needed to stretch a base pair located far away from the ends of a dsDNA molecule is found twice the value of the force needed to stretch a base pair located at one of the ends to the same distance for y 1.0 . The force F(y) in both cases is found to have a very large value for y 0.2 compared to the critical force found from the constant force ensemble to which F(y) approaches for large values of y. It is shown that the value of F(y) at the peak depends on the value of k which measures the energy barrier associated with the reduction in DNA strand rigidity as one passes from dsDNA to ssDNA and on the value of the depth of the on-site potential. The effect of defects on the position and height of the peak in the F(y) curve is investigated by replacing some of the base pairs including the one being stretched by defect base pairs. The formation and behaviour of a loop of Y shape when one of the ends base pair is stretched and a bubble of ssDNA with the shape of an eye when a base pair far from ends is stretched are investigated.