Bryan Tracy M, Baumann Peter
Children's Medical Research Institute and the University of Sydney, Sydney, Australia.
Methods Mol Biol. 2010;608:1-16. doi: 10.1007/978-1-59745-363-9_1.
G-quartets are square planar arrangements of four guanine bases, which can form extraordinarily stable stacks when present in nucleic acid sequences. Such G-quadruplex structures were long regarded as an in vitro phenomenon, but the widespread presence of suitable sequences in genomes and the identification of proteins that stabilize, modify, or resolve these nucleic acid structures have provided circumstantial evidence for their physiological relevance. The therapeutic potential of small molecules that can stabilize or disrupt G-quadruplex structures has invigorated the field in recent years. Here we review some of the key observations that support biological functions for G-quadruplex DNA as well as the techniques and tools that have enabled researchers to probe these structures and their interactions with proteins and small molecules.
G-四联体是由四个鸟嘌呤碱基组成的方形平面排列，当存在于核酸序列中时，它们可以形成极其稳定的堆积。这种G-四链体结构长期以来被认为是一种体外现象，但基因组中广泛存在合适的序列以及对稳定、修饰或解析这些核酸结构的蛋白质的鉴定，为它们的生理相关性提供了间接证据。近年来，能够稳定或破坏G-四链体结构的小分子的治疗潜力激发了该领域的活力。在这里，我们回顾一些支持G-四链体DNA生物学功能的关键观察结果，以及使研究人员能够探测这些结构及其与蛋白质和小分子相互作用的技术和工具。
