Base and sequence selective cleavage of RNA phosphodiester bonds by Zn(II) azacrown chelates



: Wang Q, Jancso A, Niittymaki T, Poijarvi-Virta P, Ketomaki K, Virta P, Leino E, Szilagyi I, Mikkola S, Gajda T, Lonnberg H

: 2008

: Collection Symposium Series

: CHEMISTRY OF NUCLEIC ACID COMPONENTS

: COLL SYMPOS SERIES

: 10

: 63

: 70

: 8

: 978-80-86241-29-6


Zn2+ chelates of azacrowns exhibit two interesting properties: they promote the cleavage of RNA phosphodiester bonds and undergo selective binding to nucleic acid bases, the affinity decreasing in the order Ura > Gua > Ade approximate to Cyt. Binding of di- and trinuclear Zn2+ azacrown chelates to contiguous bases in RNA is a co-operative process. The stability of a ternary complex may, in fact, be so high that the complex formation is possible at intracellular concentrations of Zn2+. Various di- and trinucleating azacrown ligands have been prepared and studied as base-selective cleaving agents of RNA. Sequence-selective artificial ribonucleases have, in turn, been obtained by tethering azacrown ligands to a 2'-O-methyl oligoribonucleotide that recognizes the target sequence. The results of these studies are surveyed.



Last updated on 2024-26-11 at 23:30