Corrigendum to "Formation of Silver Nanoclusters from a DNA Template Containing Ag(I)-Mediated Base Pairs".

[This corrects the article DOI: 10.1155/2016/7485125.].

Fluorescent DNA-Templated Silver Nanoclusters from Silver(I)-Mediated Base Pairs.

Silver nanoclusters (AgNCs) stabilized by double-stranded DNA (dsDNA) are of special interest because the duplex structures provide rigidity and chirality that can be transferred to the metal clusters. This work reports fluorescent AgNCs obtained from dsDNA templates containing artificial ligand-derived nucleobases. They are compared with fluorescent AgNCs obtained from DNA templates containing C:C mismatches (C, cytosine). Towards this end, the new metal-mediated Im-AgI -C base pair composed of imidazole (Im) and cytosine was introduced into dsDNA and reduced to form AgNCs. The clusters were characterized by UV/Vis, fluorescence and circular dichroism spectroscopy. The AgNCs form chiral aggregates with dsDNA. Their optical properties are highly sequence-dependent. As a result, a simple method to detect a cytosine insertion into a run of cytosine residues in a duplex is proposed using the human CDH1 gene as an example.

AgI -Induced Switching of DNA Binding Modes via Formation of a Supramolecular Metallacycle.

The histidine derivative L1 of the DNA intercalator naphthalenediimide (NDI) forms a triangular AgI complex (C2). The interactions of L1 and of C2 with DNA were studied by circular dichroism (CD) and UV/Vis spectroscopy and by viscosity studies. Different binding modes were observed for L1 and for C2, as the AgI complex C2 is too large in size to act as an intercalator. If AgI is added to the NDI molecule that is already intercalated into a duplex, higher order complexes are formed within the DNA duplex and cause disruptions in the helical duplex structure, which leads to a significant decrease in the characteristic CD features of B-DNA. Thus, via addition of a metal we show how a classic and well-known organic intercalator unit can be turned into a partial metallo insertor. We also show how electrochemical impedance spectroscopy (EIS) can be used to probe DNA binding modes on DNA films that are immobilized on gold surfaces.

DNA Films Containing the Artificial Nucleobase Imidazole Mediate Charge Transfer in a Silver(I)-Responsive Way.

The first sequence-dependent study of DNA films containing metal-mediated base pairs was performed to investigate the charge transfer resistance (RCT ) of metal-modified DNA. The imidazole (Im) deoxyribonucleoside was chosen as a highly AgI -specific ligandoside for the formation of Im-AgI -Im complexes within the duplexes. This new class of site-specifically metal-modified DNA films was characterized by UV, circular dichroism (CD), and X-ray photoelectron spectroscopy (XPS). The electrochemical properties of these systems were investigated by means of electron impedance spectroscopy and scanning electrochemical microscopy. Taken together, these experiments indicated that the incorporation of AgI ions into the DNA films leads to reduced electron transfer through the DNA films. A simple device was proposed that can be switched reversibly between two distinct states with different charge transfer resistance.

Thermodynamics of the formation of Ag(I)-mediated azole base pairs in DNA duplexes.

Isothermal titration calorimetry was applied to determine the thermodynamic parameters for the specific binding of Ag(I) ions to a series of DNA duplexes comprising Im:Im or Tr:Tr mispairs to form metal-mediated Im-Ag(I)-Im or Tr-Ag(I)-Tr base pairs (Im=imidazole nucleoside; Tr=1.2,4-triazole nucleoside). A total of seven different duplexes are discussed, incorporating one to three artificial base pairs in neighboring or non-neighboring positions. The association constant related to the formation of Tr-Ag(I)-Tr base pairs is estimated to be <10(3)M(-1). In contrast, Im-Ag(I)-Im base pairs are much more stable. The intrinsic association constant for their formation is in the order of 10(6)M(-1) and is therefore larger than that for the formation of T-Hg(II)-T and C-Ag(I)-C base pairs consisting of natural nucleobases. Two neighboring Im-Ag(I)-Im base pairs form cooperatively, whereas two remotely located Im-Ag(I)-Im base pairs form non-cooperatively. In general, the specific binding of Ag(I) to Im:Im-containing duplexes is enthalpically driven, with a significant additional entropic contribution in most cases.

6-Pyrazolylpurine as an Artificial Nucleobase for Metal-Mediated Base Pairing in DNA Duplexes.

The artificial nucleobase 6-pyrazol-1-yl-purine (6PP) has been investigated with respect to its usability in metal-mediated base pairing. As was shown by temperature-dependent UV spectroscopy, 6PP may form weakly stabilizing 6PP-Ag(I)-6PP homo base pairs. Interestingly, 6PP can be used to selectively recognize a complementary pyrimidine nucleobase. The addition of Ag(I) to a DNA duplex comprising a central 6PP:C mispair (C = cytosine) leads to a slight destabilization of the duplex. In contrast, a stabilizing 6PP-Ag(I)-T base pair is formed with a complementary thymine (T) residue. It is interesting to note that 6PP is capable of differentiating between the pyrimidine moieties despite the fact that it is not as sterically crowded as 6-(3,5-dimethylpyrazol-1-yl)purine, an artificial nucleobase that had previously been suggested for the recognition of nucleic acid sequences via the formation of a metal-mediated base pair. Hence, the additional methyl groups of 6-(3,5-dimethylpyrazol-1-yl)purine may not be required for the specific recognition of the complementary nucleobase.

Formation of Silver Nanoclusters from a DNA Template Containing Ag(I)-Mediated Base Pairs.

A series of DNA double helices containing different numbers of silver(I)-mediated base pairs involving the artificial nucleobases imidazole or 2-methylimidazole has been applied for the generation of DNA-templated silver nanoclusters. The original Ag(I)-containing nucleic acids as well as the resulting nanoclusters and nanoparticles have been characterized by means of UV/Vis spectroscopy, circular dichroism (CD) spectroscopy, fluorescence spectroscopy, and transmission electron microscopy (TEM). The results show for the first time that metal-mediated base pairs can be used for the templated growth of metal nanoclusters.