Abstract
Stacking interactions in single-stranded nucleic acids give rise to configurations of an annealed rod-coil multiblock copolymer. Theoretical analysis identifies the following resulting signatures for long homopolynucleotides: a nonmonotonic dependence of size on temperature, the corresponding effects on cyclization and a plateau in the extension force law. Explicit numerical results for polydeoxyadenylate [poly(dA)] and polyriboadenylate [poly(rU)] are presented.
- Received 11 February 2004
DOI:https://doi.org/10.1103/PhysRevE.70.020902
©2004 American Physical Society