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Study of thermal and acid denaturation of DNA by means of voltammetry at graphite electrodes
Author(s) -
Brabec Viktor
Publication year - 1979
Publication title -
biopolymers
Language(s) - English
Resource type - Journals
SCImago Journal Rank - 0.556
H-Index - 125
eISSN - 1097-0282
pISSN - 0006-3525
DOI - 10.1002/bip.1979.360181003
Subject(s) - chemistry , guanine , denaturation (fissile materials) , pyrolytic carbon , thymine , protonation , dna , cyclic voltammetry , electrochemistry , differential pulse voltammetry , voltammetry , cytosine , electrode , perchloric acid , crystallography , analytical chemistry (journal) , inorganic chemistry , biochemistry , nuclear chemistry , organic chemistry , pyrolysis , nucleotide , ion , gene
Abstract Conformational changes in guanine–cytosine (G·C) and adenine–thymine (A·T) pairs in DNA were investigated by means of differential pulse voltammetry at a pyrolytic graphite electrode (PGE). As a monitor of these conformational changes, two separated voltammetric peaks, G and A, which correspond to electrochemical oxidation at the PGE of guanine and adenine residues, respectively, were used. It was found that peak A was first increased in the course of thermal denaturation of DNA. This indicates that, on heating a native DNA sample, regions rich in A·T pairs melt first. In the course of acid denaturation of a native DNA sample, the height of peak A was changed just before the denaturation. It is suggested that protonation of adenine residues in DNA regions rich in A·T pairs was responsible for these changes.