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Templated Synthesis Of Nylon Nucleic Acids And Characterization By Nuclease Digestion, Yu Liu, Risheng Wang, Liang Ding, Roujie Sha, Nadrian C. Seeman, James W. Canary

Chemistry Faculty Research & Creative Works

Nylon nucleic acids containing oligouridine nucleotides with pendent polyamide linkers and flanked by unmodified heteronucleotide sequences were prepared by DNA templated synthesis. Templation was more efficient than the single-stranded synthesis; coupling step yields were as high as 99.2%, with up to 7 amide linkages formed in the synthesis of a molecule containing 8 modified nucleotides. Controlled digestion by calf spleen phosphodiesterase enabled the mapping of modified nucleotides in the sequences. a combination of complete degradation of nylon nucleic acids by snake venom phosphodiesterase and dephosphorylation of the resulting nucleotide fragments by bacterial alkaline phosphatase, followed by LCMS analysis, clarified the …