Oligonucleotides containing spin-labeled 2′-deoxycytidine and 5-methyl-2′-deoxycytidine as probes for structural motifs of DNA

Paramagnetic Chemical Probes for Studying Biological Macromolecules

Paramagnetic chemical probes have been used in electron paramagnetic resonance (EPR) and nuclear magnetic resonance (NMR) spectroscopy for more than four decades. Recent years witnessed a great increase in the variety of probes for the study of biological macromolecules (proteins, nucleic acids, and oligosaccharides). This Review aims to provide a comprehensive overview of the existing paramagnetic chemical probes, including chemical synthetic approaches, functional properties, and selected applications. Recent developments have seen, in particular, a rapid expansion of the range of lanthanoid probes with anisotropic magnetic susceptibilities for the generation of structural restraints based on residual dipolar couplings and pseudocontact shifts in solution and solid state NMR spectroscopy, mostly for protein studies. Also many new isotropic paramagnetic probes, suitable for NMR measurements of paramagnetic relaxation enhancements, as well as EPR spectroscopic studies (in particular double resonance techniques) have been developed and employed to investigate biological macromolecules. Notwithstanding the large number of reported probes, only few have found broad application and further development of probes for dedicated applications is foreseen.

High-Yield Spin Labeling of Long RNAs for Electron Paramagnetic Resonance Spectroscopy

Site-directed spin labeling is a powerful tool for investigating the conformation and dynamics of biomacromolecules such as RNA. Here we introduce a spin labeling strategy based on click chemistry in solution that, in combination with enzymatic ligation, allows highly efficient labeling of complex and long RNAs with short reaction times and suppressed RNA degradation. With this approach, a 34-nucleotide aptamer domain of the preQ1 riboswitch and an 81-nucleotide TPP riboswitch aptamer could be labeled with two labels in several positions. We then show that conformations of the preQ1 aptamer and its dynamics can be monitored in the absence and presence of Mg²⁺ and a preQ1 ligand by continuous wave electron paramagnetic resonance spectroscopy at room temperature and pulsed electron-electron double resonance spectroscopy (PELDOR or DEER) in the frozen state.

Post-synthetic Spin-Labeling of RNA through Click Chemistry for PELDOR Measurements

Site-directed spin labeling of RNA based on click chemistry is used in combination with pulsed electron-electron double resonance (PELDOR) to benchmark a nitroxide spin label, called here dŲ. We compare this approach with another established method that employs the rigid spin label Çm for RNA labeling. By using CD spectroscopy, thermal denaturation measurements, CW-EPR as well as PELDOR we analyzed and compared the influence of dŲ and Çm on a self-complementary RNA duplex. Our results demonstrate that the conformational diversity of dŲ is significantly reduced near the freezing temperature of a phosphate buffer, resulting in strongly orientation-selective PELDOR time traces of the dŲ-labeled RNA duplex.

Nitroxide-labeled pyrimidines for non-covalent spin-labeling of abasic sites in DNA and RNA duplexes

Non-covalent and site-directed spin labeling gives easy access to spin-labeled nucleic acids for the study of their structure and dynamics by electron paramagnetic resonance (EPR) spectroscopy. In a search for improved spin labels for non-covalent binding to abasic sites in duplex DNA and RNA, ten pyrimidine-derived spin labels were prepared in good yields and their binding was evaluated by continuous wave (CW)-EPR spectroscopy. Most of the spin labels showed lower binding affinity than the previously reported label ç towards abasic sites in DNA and RNA. The most promising labels were triazole-linked spin labels and a pyrrolocytosine label. In particular, the N1-ethylamino derivative of a triazole-linked uracil spin label binds fully to both DNA and RNA containing an abasic site. This is the first example of a spin label that binds fully through non-covalent interactions with an abasic site in RNA.

Oligonucleotide labeling: synthesis of a new spin-labeled 2'-deoxyguanosine analogue

In order to achieve an EPR sensitive probe for DNA, 3-carboxy-Proxyl free radical was linked to O-6 of dG through a five-atoms-tether. The modified base was incorporated into a 30-mer ODN, then annealed to its complementary DNA strand. Hydrodynamic parameters show only a slight destabilization with respect to the equivalent unlabeled hybrid. EPR could monitor the hybrid formation showing a progressive enlargement of the upfield signal in passing from the labeled ss- to the ds-30-mer.