Postsynthetische DNA-Modifizierung mithilfe der kupferkatalysierten Azid-Alkin-Cycloaddition

Click chemistry for the identification of G-quadruplex structures: discovery of a DNA-RNA G-quadruplex

A trap that closes with a "click": The copper-catalyzed azide-alkyne cycloaddition can occur in different G-quadruplex structures (see scheme). The species trapped by the click reaction can then be separated and analyzed. By using this approach, a DNA-RNA hybrid-type G-quadruplex structure formed by human telomeric DNA and RNA sequences was detected.

Bioorthogonal chemistry: fishing for selectivity in a sea of functionality

The study of biomolecules in their native environments is a challenging task because of the vast complexity of cellular systems. Technologies developed in the last few years for the selective modification of biological species in living systems have yielded new insights into cellular processes. Key to these new techniques are bioorthogonal chemical reactions, whose components must react rapidly and selectively with each other under physiological conditions in the presence of the plethora of functionality necessary to sustain life. Herein we describe the bioorthogonal chemical reactions developed to date and how they can be used to study biomolecules.