On the role of mercury in the non-covalent stabilisation of consecutive U-HgII-U metal-mediated nucleic acid base pairs: metallophilic attraction enters the world of nucleic acids

0358657 - ÚOCHB 2012 RIV GB eng J - Journal Article
Benda, Ladislav - Straka, Michal - Yoshiyuki, T. - Sychrovský, Vladimír
On the role of mercury in the non-covalent stabilisation of consecutive U-HgII-U metal-mediated nucleic acid base pairs: metallophilic attraction enters the world of nucleic acids.
Physical Chemistry Chemical Physics. Roč. 13, č. 1 (2011), s. 100-103. ISSN 1463-9076. E-ISSN 1463-9084
R&D Projects: GA ČR GA203/09/2037; GA ČR GAP205/10/0228
Grant - others:European Reintegration Grant(XE) 230955
Institutional research plan: CEZ:AV0Z40550506
Keywords : metallophilic attraction * nucleic acid * mercury
Subject RIV: CF - Physical ; Theoretical Chemistry
Impact factor: 3.573, year: 2011

The metal atoms with a closed-shell electronic structure and positive charge as for example the AuI, PtII, AgI, TlI or HgII atoms do not in some compounds repel each other due to the so-called metalophillic attraction (P. Pyykkö, Chemical Reviews 1997, 97, 597-636). Here we highlight role of the HgII…HgII metalophillic attraction acting between the consecutive metal-mediated mismatched base pairs of nucleic acids. Usually, the base stacking dominates the non-covalent interactions between steps of native nucleic acids. In the presence of metal-mediated base pairs are these non-covalent interactions enriched by the metal-base interactions and the metalophillic attraction. The two interactions arising due to the metal linkage of the mismatches in this study were found to have a stabilizing effect on nucleic acid structure.
Permanent Link: http://hdl.handle.net/11104/0196621