Distinguishing Individual DNA Bases in a Network by Non‐Resonant Tip‐Enhanced Raman Scattering

The importance of identifying DNA bases at the single‐molecule level is well recognized for many biological applications. Although such identification can be achieved by electrical measurements using special setups, it is still not possible to identify single bases in real space by optical means owi...

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Bibliographic Details
Published in:Angewandte Chemie International Edition 2017-05, Vol.56 (20), p.5561-5564
Main Authors: Zhang, Rui, Zhang, Xianbiao, Wang, Huifang, Zhang, Yao, Jiang, Song, Hu, Chunrui, Zhang, Yang, Luo, Yi, Dong, Zhenchao
Format: Article
Language:English
Subjects:
Adenine
Adenine - chemistry
Base Pairing
Base pairs
Complementary DNA
Deoxyribonucleic acid
Diffraction
DNA
DNA - chemistry
DNA bases
DNA sequencing
Electrical measurement
Microscopes
molecular recognition
non-resonant Raman spectroscopy
Raman spectra
Scanning tunneling microscopy
Sequence Analysis, DNA
Short term memory
Spatial discrimination
Spatial resolution
Spectrum Analysis, Raman
Thymine
Thymine - chemistry
tip-enhanced Raman scattering
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Summary:The importance of identifying DNA bases at the single‐molecule level is well recognized for many biological applications. Although such identification can be achieved by electrical measurements using special setups, it is still not possible to identify single bases in real space by optical means owing to the diffraction limit. Herein, we demonstrate the outstanding ability of scanning tunneling microscope (STM)‐controlled non‐resonant tip‐enhanced Raman scattering (TERS) to unambiguously distinguish two individual complementary DNA bases (adenine and thymine) with a spatial resolution down to 0.9 nm. The distinct Raman fingerprints identified for the two molecules allow to differentiate in real space individual DNA bases in coupled base pairs. The demonstrated ability of non‐resonant Raman scattering with super‐high spatial resolution will significantly extend the applicability of TERS, opening up new routes for single‐molecule DNA sequencing. A or T? TERS can tell: Real‐space chemical recognition of single DNA bases in hydrogen‐bonded networks was realized for the first time. This was achieved by using the recently developed sub‐nanometer‐resolved tip‐enhanced Raman scattering (TERS) technique based on ultrahigh‐vacuum and low‐temperature scanning tunneling microscopy.
ISSN:1433-7851
1521-3773
1521-3773
DOI:10.1002/anie.201702263