Lithium ion induced stabilization of the liquid crystalline DNA

Abstract

A comparative study of the effects of alkali metal ions Li+, Na+, K+, Rb+, and Cs+ on the liquid crystalline organization of high-molecular-weight calf thymus DNA using polarized light microscopy was performed. Major differences in the behavior of Li+ as compared to the other ions were found. Critical DNA concentration expected to exhibit anisotropic behavior was found to be the same for all the monovalent ions, except for Li+. DNA initially showed cholesteric textures, which later changed to higher ordered columnar phase for all ions, with the cholesteric-columnar transition facilitated upon increasing the size of the counterion. For Li+ ion, a nematic schlieren-like texture was formed initially, which after a few days changed to a highly stable (for more than 2 months) biphasic cholesteric-columnar arrangement. The observed differences between Li+ and other alkali metal ions could be rationalized on the basis of the higher number of hydration water molecules of Li+ and its complexation behavior. Highly stable DNA mesophases may find applications in the field of nanoelectronics, in designing biosensing units, and in DNA chips.