Abstract
In this work, the influence of the cyclodextrin, CD, nature on the decompaction of positively charged compacted dimeric surfactant-DNA complexes was investigated. First, the condensation of calf thymus DNA by addition of three cationic dimeric surfactants with different spacer groups was studied by fluorescence, zeta potential, circular dichroism and atomic force microscopy measurements. Electromotive force experiments provided quantitative information about the influence of the spacer group on the DNA surfactant compaction efficiency. Cytotoxicity was evaluated to determine the biocompatibility of the cationic lipids. Subsequently, the decompaction of the surfactant-DNA complexes was achieved by adding α-, β-, and γ-cyclodextrin, the experimental observations being analogous for the three surfactants investigated. α- and β-cyclodextrin were found to behave similarly. These CDs completely hinder the interactions between the surfactant and the nucleic acid and provoke the DNA morphological change from a globular to an elongated form. A concentration of γ-CD higher than those of α- or β-CD is necessary in order to decompact the nucleic acid. Besides, zeta potential measurements show that in the presence of γ-CD, surfactant-DNA interactions are only partially hindered, some of the surfactant molecules remaining bound to the DNA.
Published Version
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