Self-Assembly of 3D DNA Crystals Containing a Torsionally Stressed Component

Journal Article · Wed Nov 01 00:00:00 EDT 2017 · Cell Chemical Biology

DOI:https://doi.org/10.1016/j.chembiol.2017.08.018· OSTI ID:1482398

Hernandez, Carina; Birktoft, Jens J.; Ohayon, Yoel P.; Chandrasekaran, Arun Richard; Abdallah, Hatem; Sha, Ruojie; Stojanoff, Vivian; Mao, Chengde; Seeman, Nadrian C.

There is an increasing appreciation for structural diversity of DNA that is of interest to both DNA nanotechnology and basic biology. Here, we have explored how DNA responds to torsional stress by building on a previously reported two-turn DNA tensegrity triangle and demonstrating that we could introduce an extra nucleotide pair (np) into the original sequence without affecting assembly and crystallization. The extra np imposes a significant torsional stress, which is accommodated by global changes throughout the B-DNA duplex and the DNA lattice. Furthermore, the work reveals a near-atomic structure of naked DNA under a torsional stress of approximately 14%, and thus provides an example of DNA distortions that occur without a requirement for either an external energy source or the free energy available from protein or drug binding.

• Research Organization: Brookhaven National Lab. (BNL), Upton, NY (United States)
• Sponsoring Organization: USDOE Office of Science (SC), Biological and Environmental Research (BER)
• Grant/Contract Number: SC0007991; SC0012704
• OSTI ID: 1482398
• Alternate ID(s): OSTI ID: 1435732
• Report Number(s): BNL-203483-2018-JAAM; S2451945617303161; PII: S2451945617303161
• Journal Information: Cell Chemical Biology, Journal Name: Cell Chemical Biology Vol. 24 Journal Issue: 11; ISSN 2451-9456
• Publisher: Elsevier
• Country of Publication: United States
• Language: English

Related Subjects

36 MATERIALS SCIENCE
torsionally stressed DNA
structural DNA nanotechnology
self-assembled 3D
DNA crystals
X-ray diffraction
designed crystals