Salt-dependent stability of poly(dG).poly(dC) with potential of mean force Coulomb interactions

Salt dependent premelting base pair opening probabilities of B and Z DNA Poly [d(G-C)] and significance for the B-Z transition

We calculate room temperature thermal fluctuational base pair opening probabilities of B and Z DNA Poly[d(G-C)] at various salt concentrations and discuss the significance of thermal fluctuation in facilitating base pair disruption during B to Z transition. Our calculated base pair opening probability of the B DNA at lower salt concentrations and the probability of the Z DNA at high salt concentrations are in agreement with observations. The salt dependence of the probabilities indicates a B to Z transition at a salt concentration close to the observed concentration.

Synergistic effects in the melting of DNA hydration shell: melting of the minor groove hydration spine in poly(dA).poly(dT) and its effect on base pair stability

We propose that water of hydration in contact with the double helix can exist in several states. One state, found in the narrow groove of poly(dA).poly(dT), should be considered as frozen to the helix, i.e., an integral part of the double helix. We find that this enhanced helix greatly effects the stability of that helix against base separation melting. Most water surrounding the helix is, however, melted or disassociated with respect to being an integral part of helix and plays a much less significant role in stabilizing the helix dynamically, although these water molecules play an important role in stabilizing the helix conformation statically. We study the temperature dependence of the melting of the hydration spine and find that narrow groove nonbonded interactions are necessary to stabilize the spine above room temperature and to show the broad transition observed experimentally. This calculation requires that synergistic effects of nonbonded interactions between DNA and its hydration shell affect the state of water-base atom hydrogen bonds. The attraction of waters into narrow groove tends to retain waters in the groove and compress or strain these hydrogen bonds.