title: Observation of single-stranded DNA on mica and highly oriented pyrolytic graphite by atomic force microscopy.
abstract: Atomic force microscopy was used to image single-stranded DNA (ssDNA) adsorbed on mica modified by Mg(2+), by 3-aminopropyltriethoxysilane or on modified highly oriented pyrolytic graphite (HOPG). ssDNA molecules on mica have compact structures with lumps, loops and super twisting, while on modified HOPG graphite ssDNA molecules adopt a conformation without secondary structures. We have shown that the immobilization of ssDNA under standard conditions on modified HOPG eliminates intramolecular base-pairing, thus this method could be important for studying certain processes involving ssDNA in more details.
authors.affiliation: Laboratoire de Physique de la Matière Vivante, Ecole Polytechnique Fédérale de Lausanne (EPFL), CH-1015 Lausanne, Switzerland.
authors.forename: Jozef
authors.initials: J
authors.lastname: Adamcik
authors.forename: Dmitry V
authors.initials: DV
authors.lastname: Klinov
authors.forename: Guillaume
authors.initials: G
authors.lastname: Witz
authors.forename: Sergey K
authors.initials: SK
authors.lastname: Sekatskii
authors.forename: Giovanni
authors.initials: G
authors.lastname: Dietler
mesh_terms: D000538:Aluminum Silicates; D004277:DNA, Single-Stranded / Q000648:ultrastructure*; D006108:Graphite; D018625:Microscopy, Atomic Force
chemical_list: D000538:Aluminum Silicates; D004277:DNA, Single-Stranded; D006108:Graphite; C011934:mica