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. 1984 Jun 11;12(11):4679–4690. doi: 10.1093/nar/12.11.4679

Binding of ethidium and bis(methidium)spermine to Z DNA by intercalation.

R H Shafer, S C Brown, A Delbarre, D Wade
PMCID: PMC318867  PMID: 6739293

Abstract

The interaction of ethidium bromide, a DNA intercalating drug, and bis( methidium )spermine, a DNA bis-intercalating compound, with the left-handed Z form of poly(dG-dC) has been studied in 4.4 M NaCl. Spectrophotometric analysis using absorption, fluorescence and circular dichroism indicates that the complex formed between ethidium and Z DNA resembles very closely that formed with B DNA. This suggests that ethidium binds to Z DNA by intercalation. 31P NMR spectra are presented showing both the conversion of the Z form to the B form with increasing amounts of drug and the typical Z form spectrum at low binding densities. Data are also presented which show that the bifunctional intercalator bis( methidium )spermine binds to Z DNA in a manner similar to its binding to B DNA, i.e., by bis-intercalation. These results are important for our understanding the behavior of Z DNA and its biological significance.

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Selected References

These references are in PubMed. This may not be the complete list of references from this article.

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