Synthetic Analogues of Polynucleotides

• Published in: Nature (London) 1968-02, Vol.217 (5129), p.638-640
• Main Authors: HALFORD, M. H, JONES, A. S
• Format: Article
• Language: English
• Subjects: Chromatography, Gel; Crystallization; Dextrans; Humanities and Social Sciences; letter; Models, Structural; multidisciplinary; Nucleosides; Polynucleotides - chemical synthesis; Science; Science (multidisciplinary)
• ISSN: 0028-0836; 1476-4687
• DOI: 10.1038/217638a0

ANALOGUES of purines and pyrimidines have been used as antimetabolites 1 . Some of these have been converted into their nucleosides or nucleotides which also act as antimetabolites 2 . Analogues of nucleosides in which D-ribose or 2-deoxy-D-ribose is replaced by another carbohydrate or carbohydrate analogue have also been extensively studied 2 . Some of the nucleotide analogues have been converted into polynucleotide analogues by the use of suitable enzymes 3–6 and by taking advantage of the fact that certain micro-organisms will incorporate the nucleotide analogue into DNA or RNA (refs. 7–13). The synthesis of polynucleotide analogues in which the purine or pyrimidine side chains are linked by a type of backbone different from the sugar phosphate backbone of the natural polynucleotides has been reported in previous work from this laboratory. One type was obtained by copolymerizing 5′- O -acrylyluridine with acrylamide 14 and another by reacting adenosine dialdehyde with polyacrylic acid hydrazide 15 . Both these polymers contained a fraction which hybridized with denatured DNA trapped in agar and with denatured DNA in solution.