What is it about?
Double stranded DNA is the repository of genetic information in all living organisms. To access and process the information encoded in the sequence of four different base pairs (A-T, T-A, G-C and C-G), the duplex strands of DNA must be separated during every cell cycle. In the laboratory, buffered salt solutions of purified DNA serve as model systems with which to study the opening (or melting) of duplex DNA with increasing temperature. The arrangement of base pairs along a DNA sequence strongly affects the order in which regions of the DNA open or melt with increasing temperature. We have employed our theoretical model to explore the melting behaviors of different DNA sequence arrangements including random, correlated and block sequences. Our approach is based on the same concepts and methods used to treat complex systems, for which Professor Giorgio Parisi was awarded the Nobel Prize in Physics in 2021.
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Why is it important?
The three primary genetic processes, namely DNA transcription, replication and recombination, all involve at some level DNA opening and unwinding. Our study represents a small step forward in addressing a key question in understanding biological phenomena. That is, how does the genetic code affect DNA opening in cells?
Perspectives
Once we know how the sequence arrangement affects DNA unwinding, a plethora of Biotechnologies gets unlocked: from making a temperature switch with DNA (so that it opens at a particular temperature), to an early stage diagnosing of genetic diseases by comparing the melting curves (amount of opened parts vs temperature), to targeted gene therapy, which crucially depends on DNA conformations to avoid bio-degradation during the delivery phase, and many, many more.
Artem Badasyan
University of Nova Gorica
Read the Original
This page is a summary of: Origins of fine structure in DNA melting curves, The Journal of Chemical Physics, August 2024, American Institute of Physics,
DOI: 10.1063/5.0213526.
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