ÖPG-CMD Joint Meeting 2026

P030 - Ion-tunable DNA Oligo-Catenanes with Mechanical Heterogeneity

Sep 21, 2026, 1:30 PM

1h

RESOWI B+F (University of Graz)

1) Poster M35 - Lipids, surfactants and polyelectrolytes Poster session

Speaker

Terpsichori Alexiou (Faculty of Physics, University of Vienna)

Description

Atomistic molecular dynamics simulations are conducted on aqueous ionic solutions containing catenated pairs of double-stranded DNA (dsDNA) minicircles [1-3] that feature flexible single-stranded (ssDNA) segments along their contour. Effective pair interaction potentials are evaluated as functions of the center-of-mass separation between the heterogeneous minicircles. The effects of ion type, ionic strength, and ssDNA segment length on the resulting effective interactions are systematically analyzed. The results provide fundamental insight into how localized flexibility modulates the structural dynamics, rotational behavior, and emergent functionalities of DNA-based nanostructures.
REFERENCES
(1) Alexiou, T. S.; Alatas, P. V.; Tsalikis, D. G.; Mavrantzas, V. G. Conformational and Dynamic Properties of Short DNA Minicircles in Aqueous Solution from Atomistic Molecular Dynamics Simulations. Macromolecules 2020, 53 (14).
(2) Alexiou, T. S.; Likos, C. N. Effective Interactions between Double-Stranded DNA Molecules in Aqueous Electrolyte Solutions: Effects of Molecular Architecture and Counterion Valency. Journal of Physical Chemistry B 2023, 127 (31).
(3) Alexiou, T. S.; Likos, C. N. Ion-Specific Modulation of the Conformation and Compactness of DNA Oligo-Catenanes. Journal of Physical Chemistry B 2026, 130 (2).