SOLUTION STRUCTURE OF A PARALLEL-STRANDED G-QUADRUPLEX DNA

This paper reports on the solution structure of a parallel-stranded G-quadruplex formed by the Tetrahymena telomeric sequence d(T-T-G-G-G-G-T) whose NMR parameters in potassium cation containing solution were previously published from our laboratory. The structure was determined by combining a quantitative analysis of the NMR data with molecular dynamics calculations including relaxation matrix refinement. The combined NMR-computational approach yielded a set of seven distance-refined structures with pairwise RMSDs ranging from 0.66 to 1.30 Å for the central G-G-G-G tetranucleotide segment. Four of the seven structures were refined further using complete relaxation-matrix calculations to yield solution structures with pairwise RMSDs ranging from 0.64 to 1.04 Å for the same tetranucleotide segment. The R-factors also decreased on proceeding from the distance-refined to relaxation matrix-refined structures. The four strands of the G-quadruplex are aligned in parallel and are related by a 4-fold symmetry axis coincident with the helix axis. Individual guanines from each strand form planar G·G·G·G tetrad arrangements with each tetrad stabilized by eight hydrogen bonds involving the Watson-Crick and Hoogsteen edges of the guanine bases. All guanines adopt anti glycosidic torsion angles and S type sugar puckers in this right-handed parallel-stranded G-quadruplex structure. The four G·G·G·G tetrad planes stack on each other with minimal overlap of adjacent guanine base planes within individual strands. The thymine residues are underdefined in the solution structure of the d(T-T-G-G-G-G-T) G-quadruplex and sample amongst multiple conformations in solution. © 1993 Academic Press Limited.