Scientists have captured the highest resolution images of DNA ever taken, revealing previously unseen tortuous and tortuous behaviors.
According to o research published in Nature Communications. These hidden motions were revealed by computer simulations performed with the highest resolution images ever taken of a single DNA molecule. The new study exposes previously unseen behaviors in the self-replicating molecule, and this research may eventually lead to the development of powerful new genetic therapies.
“To see is to believe, but with something as small as DNA, it was very challenging to see the helical structure of the entire DNA molecule,” said Alice Pyne, the first author of the article and a scientist. the University of Sheffield, said in a statement. of the university. “The videos we have developed allow us to observe DNA distortion in a level of detail that has never been seen before.”
Scientists have previously used microscopes to look at DNA and its twisted leather-like configuration, but it was limited to static views of the molecule. What scientists have not yet been able to see is how the intense winding of DNA affects the double helical structure. To accomplish this, Pyne and her colleagues combined high-resolution atomic force microscopy (AFM) with computer simulations of molecular dynamics, which revealed the twist.
G / O Media can get a commission
Long, very organized DNA strands are tightly stuffed into our cells. As the new study shows, it results in surprisingly dynamic physical behavior.
Agnes Noy, a lecturer at York University and a co-author of the study, said that the microscopic images and the computer simulations match so well that it increases the resolution of their experiments so that the team can of the double helix of DNA dances. ”
For the study, the researchers analyzed DNA minicircles in which a small wire is connected on both sides, forming a loop structure. DNA mini-circles have been described before, and are believed to be important health indicators.
Microscopic images of DNA minicircles in their ‘relaxed’ position (ie no turns) showed very little movement, but extra turns brought the loop to life, resulting in more powerful movements. These dynamic movements can serve an important purpose, helping the DNA to find binding partners and facilitate growth.
The new atomic force microscopy shows, “with remarkable details”, how the DNA mini-circles were really ‘crumpled, bubbled, nodded, denatured and strangely shaped’, which we hope to one day be able to control, ‘a Baylor College of Medicine Lynn biologist Zechiedrich, who provided the mini-circles for the study, said at the University of Sheffield.
Indeed, further insights into DNA and how it can become so compact could, according to the researchers, lead to the development of entirely new medical interventions, including improved DNA-based diagnostics and therapy.