Scanning tunnelling microscopy of Z-DNA

Abstract

Scanning tunnelling microscopy (STM) has been used to map the surface topography of inorganic materials at the atomic level, and is potentially one of the most powerful techniques for probing biomolecular structure. Recent STM studies of calf thymus DNA and poly(rA).poly(rU) have shown that the helical pitch and periodic alternation of major and minor grooves can be visualized and reliably measured. Here we present the first STM images of poly(dG-me5dC).poly(dG-me5dC) in the Z-form. Both the general appearance of the fibres and measurements of helical parameters are in good agreement with models derived from X-ray diffraction.