DNA Attraction in Monovalent and Divalent Electrolytes

• Abstract
• Full Text HTML
• Hi-Res PDF[441 KB]
• PDF w/ Links[172 KB]

• Supporting Info
• Figures
• Citing Articles

Your current credentials do not allow retrieval of the full text.

Purchase the full-text

• PDF/HTML,
  figures/images,
  references and tables,
  (where available)

Abstract

The dependence of the effective force on the distance between two DNA molecules was directly computed from a set of extensive all-atom molecular dynamics simulations. The simulations revealed that in a monovalent electrolyte the effective force is repulsive at short and long distances but can be attractive in the intermediate range. This attractive force is, however, too weak (5 pN per turn of a DNA helix) to induce DNA condensation in the presence of thermal fluctuations. In divalent electrolytes, DNA molecules were observed to form a bound state, where Mg²⁺ ions bridged minor groves of DNA. The effective force in divalent electrolytes was predominantly attractive, reaching a maximum of 42 pN per one turn of a DNA helix.

Citing Articles

View all 3 citing articles

Citation data is made available by participants in CrossRef's Cited-by Linking service. For a more comprehensive list of citations to this article, users are encouraged to perform a search in SciFinder.

This article has been cited by 3 ACS Journal articles (3 most recent appear below).

• 

  Improved Parametrization of Li⁺, Na⁺, K⁺, and Mg²⁺ Ions for All-Atom Molecular Dynamics Simulations of Nucleic Acid Systems

  Jejoong Yoo and Aleksei Aksimentiev
  The Journal of Physical Chemistry Letters2012 3 (1), 45-50

  • Improved Parametrization of Li⁺, Na⁺, K⁺, and Mg²⁺ Ions for All-Atom Molecular Dynamics Simulations of Nucleic Acid Systems

    Jejoong Yoo and Aleksei Aksimentiev
    The Journal of Physical Chemistry Letters2012 3 (1), 45-50

    Atomic-scale modeling of compacted nucleic acids has the ability to reveal the inner workings of spectacular biomolecular machines, yet the outcome of such modeling efforts sensitively depends on the accuracy of the underlying computational models. Our ...

    Abstract | Full Text HTML | Hi-Res PDF | PDF w/ Links
• 

  Sequence-Specific Mg²⁺–DNA Interactions: A Molecular Dynamics Simulation Study

  Weifeng Li, Lars Nordenskiöld, and Yuguang Mu
  The Journal of Physical Chemistry B2011 115 (49), 14713-14720

  • Sequence-Specific Mg²⁺–DNA Interactions: A Molecular Dynamics Simulation Study

    Weifeng Li, Lars Nordenskiöld, and Yuguang Mu
    The Journal of Physical Chemistry B2011 115 (49), 14713-14720

    The effects of Mg2+ ions, in comparison with Na+ ions, on DNA structure and conformational dynamics were studied by molecular dynamics simulations. Mg2+ ions, with a stable hydration shell consisting of six water molecules, interact with DNA mainly ...

    Abstract | Full Text HTML | Hi-Res PDF | PDF w/ Links
• 

  Salt Species-Dependent Electrostatic Effects on ssDNA Elasticity

  D. B. McIntosh and O. A. Saleh
  Macromolecules2011 44 (7), 2328-2333

  • Salt Species-Dependent Electrostatic Effects on ssDNA Elasticity

    D. B. McIntosh and O. A. Saleh
    Macromolecules2011 44 (7), 2328-2333

    The interactions of charged, flexible polymers with counterions of various valencies is a fundamental unsolved problem of polyelectrolyte physics, with specific applications to structure formation by nucleic acids, including RNA folding and DNA ...

    Abstract | Full Text HTML | Hi-Res PDF | PDF w/ Links

SciFinder Links

• Get Reference Detail
• Get Substances
• Get Cited
• Get Citing