title: Light-driven conformational regulation of human telomeric G-quadruplex DNA in physiological conditions.
abstract: Human telomeric G-quadruplexes have raised broad interest not just due to their involvement in the regulation of gene expressions and telomerase activities but also because of their application in nanoarchitectures. Herein, three azobenzene derivatives 1-3 were synthesized with different substituent groups and their photo-isomerization properties were investigated by UV/Vis spectroscopy. Then circular dichroism spectroscopy (CD), fluorescence experiments and native-gel electrophoresis were performed to evaluate their capabilities of conformational photo-regulation both in the absence and presence of metal ions. The results suggested that the compounds synthesized can successfully regulate the conformation of human telomeric G-quadruplex DNA in K(+) conditions to some extent. This work will initiate the possibility for the design and intriguing application of light-induced switching to photoregulate the conformation of G-quadruplex DNA under physiological conditions, providing a possible pathway to control G-quadruplex conformation in biological applications and also expanding the potential use of G-quadruplexes in nanomachines.
authors.affiliation: College of Chemistry and Molecular Sciences, Key Laboratory of Biomedical Polymers of Ministry of Education, Wuhan University, Hubei, Wuhan 430072, PR China.
authors.forename: Xiwen
authors.initials: X
authors.lastname: Xing
authors.forename: Xiaolin
authors.initials: X
authors.lastname: Wang
authors.forename: Xiaoling
authors.initials: X
authors.lastname: Wang
authors.forename: Liang
authors.initials: L
authors.lastname: Xu
authors.forename: Yang
authors.initials: Y
authors.lastname: Tai
authors.forename: Luyang
authors.initials: L
authors.lastname: Dai
authors.forename: Xiaolong
authors.initials: X
authors.lastname: Zheng
authors.forename: Wuxiang
authors.initials: W
authors.lastname: Mao
authors.forename: Xiaowei
authors.initials: X
authors.lastname: Xu
authors.forename: Xiang
authors.initials: X
authors.lastname: Zhou
mesh_terms: D001391:Azo Compounds / Q000138:chemical synthesis / Q000737:chemistry / Q000494:pharmacology*; D004247:DNA / Q000737:chemistry*; D054856:G-Quadruplexes / Q000187:drug effects*; D006801:Humans; D008027:Light; D015394:Molecular Structure; D011188:Potassium / Q000737:chemistry; D013237:Stereoisomerism; D016615:Telomere / Q000737:chemistry*
chemical_list: D001391:Azo Compounds; D004247:DNA; C009850:azobenzene; D011188:Potassium