High-resolution atomic force microscopy of duplex and triplex DNA molecules

Dmitry Klinov*, Benjamin Dwir, Eli Kapon, Natalia Borovok, Tatiana Molotsky, Alexander Kotlyar

*Corresponding author for this work

Research output: Contribution to journalArticlepeer-review

50 Scopus citations

Abstract

Double-stranded poly(dG)-poly(dC) and triple-stranded poly(dG)-poly(dG)- poly(dC) DNA were deposited on the modified surface of highly oriented pyrolitic graphite (HOPG) and visualized using atomic force microscopy with high-resolution (radius of ∼1 nm) tips. The high resolution attained by this technique enabled us to detect single-stranded regions in double-stranded poly(dG)-poly(dC) and double-stranded and single-stranded regions in poly(dG)-poly(dG)-poly(dC) triplexes, as well as to resolve the helical pitch of the triplex molecules. We could also follow the reaction of G-strand extension in poly(dG)-poly(dC) by the Klenow exo- fragment of DNA polymerase I. This approach to molecular visualization could serve as a useful tool for the investigation of irregular structures in canonical DNA and other biopolymers, as well as studies of the molecular mechanisms of DNA replication and transcription.

Original languageEnglish
Article number225102
JournalNanotechnology
Volume18
Issue number22
DOIs
StatePublished - 6 Jun 2007

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