Journal of the American Chemical Society, Vol.121, No.32, 7330-7334, 1999
Dynamics of DNA condensates at the solid-liquid interface by atomic force microscopy
Real-time dynamics of the interaction of two DNA condensates are imaged with atomic force microscopy under fluid. DNA condensates are formed at the solid-liquid interface of aqueous buffer and chemically modified mica. Atomic force microscopy shows that the DNA condensates and the strands that compose these condensates interact and are dynamic in fluid. For the first time, images of two closely spaced condensates show that the strands in one condensate organize commensurately with the nearby strands of the second condensate. The observed structure may be an intermediate for a multi-condensate toroid. The implications of this finding are considered.