DNA Charge Transport:  Conformationally Gated Hopping through Stacked Domains

• Published in: Journal of the American Chemical Society 2004-09, Vol.126 (37), p.11471-11483
• Main Authors: O'Neil, Melanie A, Barton, Jacqueline K
• Format: Article
• Language: English
• Subjects: 2-Aminopurine - chemistry; Base Pairing; Base Sequence; Biological and medical sciences; DNA - chemistry; Electronic structure; Fundamental and applied biological sciences. Psychology; Guanine - chemistry; Molecular biophysics; Nucleic Acid Conformation; Oligonucleotides - chemical synthesis; Oligonucleotides - chemistry; Photochemistry; Spectrometry, Fluorescence; Static Electricity; Structure in molecular biology; Temperature
• ISSN: 0002-7863; 1520-5126
• DOI: 10.1021/ja048956n

The role of base motions in delocalization and propagation of charge through double helical DNA must be established experimentally and incorporated into mechanistic descriptions of DNA-mediated charge transport (CT). Here, we address these fundamental issues by examining the temperature dependence of the yield of CT between photoexcited 2-aminopurine (Ap*) and G through DNA bridges of varied length and sequence. DNA assemblies (35-mers) were constructed containing adenine bridges Ap(A) n G (n = 0−9, 3.4−34 Å) and mixed bridges, ApAAIAG and ApATATG. CT was monitored through fluorescence quenching of Ap* by G and through HPLC analysis of photolyzed DNA assemblies containing Ap and the modified guanine, N 2-cyclopropylguanosine (CPG); upon oxidation, the CPG radical cation undergoes rapid ring opening. First, we find that below the duplex melting temperature (∼60 °C), the yield of CT through duplex DNA increases with increasing temperature governed by the length and sequence of the DNA bridge. Second, the distance dependence of CT is regulated by temperature; enhanced DNA base fluctuations within duplex DNA extend CT to significantly longer distances, here up to 34 Å in