Long-Range Ordered Water Correlations between A–T/C–G Nucleotides

Abstract

Summary The interactions between complementary base pairs are crucial to the helical duplex structure of DNA. Although base-base interactions have been widely reported, the study of long-range interactions in the base-pairing processes is still a major challenge in this field. Here, we first study the long-range interactions between the base pairs by atomic force microscopy-based single-molecule force spectroscopy (SMFS). The SMFS results of A–T/C–G imply that there are weak long-range interactions between them, which have a range of 15–25 nm. Raman spectroscopy results imply that these weak interactions can be attributed to multiplex hydrogen bond interaction of ordered water structure between A–T/C–G nucleotides. In addition, the theoretical calculations deduce that the ideal structure of these water molecules exhibits a specific helical structure. Our findings might open up a new understanding of biological assembly processes and provide helpful strategies for bio-nanotechnology.