Stabilization of Functional DNA Structures with Mild Photochemical Methods

A significant barrier to biological applications of DNA structures is their instability to nucleases. UV-mediated thymine dimerization can crosslink and stabilize DNA nanostructures, but its effect on DNA strand hybridization fidelity and function is unclear. In this work, we first compare a number of methods for DNA irradiation with different wavelengths of light and different photosensitizers. We demonstrate that all approaches can achieve nuclease protection; however, the levels of DNA off-target crosslinking and damage vary. We then describe mild irradiation conditions intended to safeguard DNA against nuclease degradation. We demonstrate up to 25× increase in serum stability while minimizing off-target damage and maintaining functions such as hybridization efficiency, gene silencing, aptamer binding, and DNA nanostructure formation. Our methodology requires no complex instruments beyond a UV light source and no synthetic modification of the DNA itself, allowing for applications in numerous areas of nucleic acid therapy and nanotechnology.