Skip to main page content
U.S. flag

An official website of the United States government

Dot gov

The .gov means it’s official.
Federal government websites often end in .gov or .mil. Before sharing sensitive information, make sure you’re on a federal government site.

Https

The site is secure.
The https:// ensures that you are connecting to the official website and that any information you provide is encrypted and transmitted securely.

Access keys NCBI Homepage MyNCBI Homepage Main Content Main Navigation
. 1995 Apr 11;92(8):3581-5.
doi: 10.1073/pnas.92.8.3581.

A constant radius of curvature model for the organization of DNA in toroidal condensates

N V Hud  1 , K H Downing, R Balhorn
Affiliations

A constant radius of curvature model for the organization of DNA in toroidal condensates

N V Hud et al. Proc Natl Acad Sci U S A. .

Abstract

Toroidal DNA condensates have received considerable attention for their possible relationship to the packaging of DNA in viruses and in general as a model of ordered DNA condensation. A spool-like model has primarily been supported for DNA organization within toroids. However, our observations suggest that the actual organization may be considerably different. We present an alternate model in which DNA for a given toroid is organized within a series of equally sized contiguous loops that precess about the toroid axis. A related model for the toroid formation process is also presented. This kinetic model predicts a distribution of toroid sizes for DNA condensed from solution that is in good agreement with experimental data.

PubMed Disclaimer

References

    1. Nature. 1977 Aug 18;268(5621):598-602 - PubMed
    1. Nature. 1976 Jan 29;259(5541):333-5 - PubMed
    1. J Mol Biol. 1978 May 25;121(3):311-26 - PubMed
    1. J Mol Biol. 1978 May 25;121(3):327-37 - PubMed
    1. Biochemistry. 1979 May 29;18(11):2192-6 - PubMed

Publication types

LinkOut - more resources