Assessing DNA structures with 125I radioprobing

Methods Mol Biol. 2010:608:137-45. doi: 10.1007/978-1-59745-363-9_9.

Abstract

Iodine-125 radioprobing is based on incorporation of radioiodine into a defined position in a nucleic acid molecule. Decay of (125)I results in the emission of multiple, low-energy Auger electrons that, along with positively charged residual daughter nuclide, produce DNA strand breaks. The probability of such strand breaks at a given nucleotide is in inverse proportion to the distance from the (125)I atom to the sugar of that nucleotide. Therefore, conclusions can be drawn about the conformation or folding of a DNA or RNA molecule based on the distribution of (125)I decay-induced strand breaks. Here we describe in detail the application (125)I radioprobing for studying the conformation of quadruplex structures, and discuss the advantages and limitations of the method.

Publication types

  • Research Support, N.I.H., Intramural

MeSH terms

  • DNA / chemistry*
  • DNA / radiation effects*
  • G-Quadruplexes*
  • Humans
  • Iodine Radioisotopes
  • Oligodeoxyribonucleotides / chemistry
  • Telomere / chemistry*
  • Telomere / radiation effects*

Substances

  • Iodine Radioisotopes
  • Oligodeoxyribonucleotides
  • DNA