Inhibition of association vs. dissociation of high-avidity DNA/anti-DNA complexes:possible involvement of secondary hydrogen bonds.

Recent results on the conditions of ionic strength needed to prevent the association of dsDNA with high avidity human anti-dsDNA, were compared with the insufficiency of even the highest practicable ionic strengths to effect the dissociation of such antigen-antibody complexes, once formed (1). Further analysis of these results make us conclude that such high avidity dsDNA-anti-dsDNA complexes, which in the initial stages of their formation are mainly of the Coulombic variety, subsequently evolve, at least in part, into hydrogen bonds.