Title: Sequence Recognition of DNA by Lexitropsins
VOLUME: 8 ISSUE: 5
Author(s):David S. Goodsell
Affiliation:Department of Molecular Biology,The Scripps Research Institute, La Jolla, CA 92037 U.S.A.
Abstract: Lexitropsins are modular polyamide molecules that are designed to “read” the base sequence of DNA. Lexitropsins constructed of three types of subunits-- pyrrole, imidazole and hydroxypyrrole--allow full recognition of DNA base sequences. Structural studies have revealed the atomic basis of this specificity. Theoretical studies have explored the effectiveness of lexitropsins in targeting a given sequence within a genome, and have been used to analyze and improve lexitropsin design.
