DNA nanotweezers studied with a coarse-grained model of DNA.
We introduce a coarse-grained rigid nucleotide model of DNA that reproduces the basic thermodynamics of short strands, duplex hybridization, single-stranded stacking, and hairpin formation, and also captures the essential structural properties of DNA: the helical pitch, persistence length, and torsi...
| Main Authors: | , , |
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| Format: | Journal article |
| Language: | English |
| Published: |
2010
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| Summary: | We introduce a coarse-grained rigid nucleotide model of DNA that reproduces the basic thermodynamics of short strands, duplex hybridization, single-stranded stacking, and hairpin formation, and also captures the essential structural properties of DNA: the helical pitch, persistence length, and torsional stiffness of double-stranded molecules, as well as the comparative flexibility of unstacked single strands. We apply the model to calculate the detailed free-energy landscape of one full cycle of DNA "tweezers," a simple machine driven by hybridization and strand displacement. |
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