Physical Sciences and Mathematics Commons^™

Monomer-Dimer Equilibrium Constants Of Rna In The Dimer Initiation Site Of Human Immunodeficiency Virus Type 1, Michael F. Shubsda, Mark P. Mcpike, Jerry Goodisman, James C. Dabrowiak

Chemistry - All Scholarship

The genome of the human immunodeficiency virus (HIV) exists as a dimer of two identical RNA molecules hydrogen bonded to each other near their 5' ends. The dimer, known to be important for viral infectivity, is formed by two monomers interacting through a stem-loop structure called the dimer initiation site (DIS). An initially formed intermediate, the "kissing" dimer, is unstable and rearranges to the stable, duplex form. In this report we use nondenaturing polyacrylamide gel electrophoresis to measure the monomer-dimer equilibrium constant of three RNA sequences, 41-, 27-, and 19-mers, located in the DIS of the MAL isolate of HIV-1. …