"Multinuclear silver clusters encapsulated by DNA are known to fluoresce and otherwise harbor interesting photophysical properties, but their atomic organization has been poorly understood," Lieberman says.
The paper presents the first crystal structure of a fluorescent silver-DNA adduct, with eight silver atoms encased between two strands of DNA. The work shows a fully reciprocal relationship between the encapsulating, flexible DNA host and the silver cluster, with the eight atoms arrayed like the Big Dipper.
"These findings provide a guide for future studies to correlate DNA sequence, metal organization, and photophysical properties of these of these light-emitting, emissive biomolecule–metallocluster hybrids," Lieberman says.
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