Influence of Magnesium Ions on the Preparation and Storage of DNA Tetrahedrons in Micromolar Ranges

The DNA tetrahedron (Td), as one of the novel DNA-based nanoscale biomaterials, has been extensively studied because of its excellent biocompatibility and increased possibilities for decorating precisely. Although the use of Td in laboratories is well established, knowledge surrounding the factors i...

Full description

Saved in:
Bibliographic Details
Published in:Molecules (Basel, Switzerland) Switzerland), 2019-06, Vol.24 (11), p.2091
Main Authors: Hu, Yue, Chen, Zhou, Hou, Zheng, Li, Mingkai, Ma, Bo, Luo, Xiaoxing, Xue, Xiaoyan
Format: Article
Language:English
Subjects:
Biocompatibility
Biomaterials
Biomedical materials
Deoxyribonucleic acid
DNA
DNA structure
DNA tetrahedron
Freeze drying
Freeze-thawing
Hydrogen bonds
Ions
lyophilization
Magnesium
magnesium ions
nanoparticles
self-assembly
Storage
Structural stability
Thawing
Citations: Items that this one cites
Items that cite this one
Online Access:Get full text
Tags: Add Tag
No Tags, Be the first to tag this record!
Description
Summary:The DNA tetrahedron (Td), as one of the novel DNA-based nanoscale biomaterials, has been extensively studied because of its excellent biocompatibility and increased possibilities for decorating precisely. Although the use of Td in laboratories is well established, knowledge surrounding the factors influencing its preparation and storage is lacking. In this research, we investigated the role of the magnesium ions, which greatly affect the structure and stability of DNA. We assembled 1, 2, 5, 10 and 20 μM Td in buffers containing different Mg concentrations, demonstrating that 2 and 5 mM Mg is optimal in these conditions, and that yields decrease dramatically once the DNA concentration reaches 20 μM or the Mg concentration is lower than 0.5 mM. We also verified that the Td structure is retained better through freeze-thawing than lyophilization. Furthermore, a lower initial Mg (≤2 mM) benefited the maintenance of Td structure in the process of lyophilization. Hence, our research sheds light on the influence of Mg in the process of preparing and storing Td, and also provides some enlightenment on improving yields of other DNA nanostructures.
ISSN:1420-3049
1420-3049
DOI:10.3390/molecules24112091