title: Preferential binding and structural distortion by Fe2+ at RGGG-containing DNA sequences correlates with enhanced oxidative cleavage at such sequences.
abstract: Certain DNA sequences are known to be unusually sensitive to nicking via the Fe2+-mediated Fenton reaction. Most notable are a purine nucleotide followed by three or more G residues, RGGG, and purine nucleotides flanking a TG combination, RTGR. Our laboratory previously demonstrated that nicking in the RGGG sequences occurs preferentially 5' to a G residue with the nicking probability decreasing from the 5' to 3'end of these sequences. Using 1H NMR to characterize Fe2+ binding within the duplex CGAGTTAGGGTAGC/GCTACCCTAACTCG and 7-deazaguanine-containing (Z) variants of it, we show that Fe2+ binds preferentially at the GGG sequence, most strongly towards its 5' end. Substitutions of individual guanines with Z indicate that the high affinity Fe2+ binding at AGGG involves two adjacent guanine N7 moieties. Binding is accompanied by large changes in specific imino, aromatic and methyl proton chemical shifts, indicating that a locally distorted structure forms at the binding site that affects the conformation of the two base pairs 3' to the GGG sequence. The binding of Fe2+ to RGGG contrasts with that previously observed for the RTGR sequence, which binds Fe2+ with negligible structural rearrangements.
authors.affiliation: Department of Molecular and Cell Biology Barker Hall University of California Berkeley CA 94720-3202, USA.
authors.forename: Priyamvada
authors.initials: P
authors.lastname: Rai
authors.forename: David E
authors.initials: DE
authors.lastname: Wemmer
authors.forename: Stuart
authors.initials: S
authors.lastname: Linn
mesh_terms: D001483:Base Sequence; D001665:Binding Sites; D004247:DNA / Q000737:chemistry* / Q000378:metabolism*; D004249:DNA Damage; D005296:Ferrous Compounds / Q000032:analysis / Q000378:metabolism*; D006147:Guanine / Q000737:chemistry*; D019906:Nuclear Magnetic Resonance, Biomolecular; D009838:Oligodeoxyribonucleotides / Q000737:chemistry* / Q000378:metabolism*; D010084:Oxidation-Reduction; D015032:Zinc / Q000032:analysis
chemical_list: D005296:Ferrous Compounds; D009838:Oligodeoxyribonucleotides; D006147:Guanine; D004247:DNA; D015032:Zinc