Generalized Poland-Scheraga model for supercoiled DNA

dc.creatorGarel, Thomas
dc.creatorOrland, Henri
dc.creatorYeramian, Edouard
dc.date2004-07-28
dc.date.accessioned2026-07-07T05:58:34Z
dc.date.available2026-07-07T05:58:34Z
dc.descriptionThe Poland-Scheraga (PS) model for the helix-coil transition of DNA considers the statistical mechanics of the thermally induced binding of two complementary strands of DNA. In this paper, we show how to modify the PS model when a torque is applied to the extremities of DNA: We propose a simple model for the energy of twisted DNA and compute the entropy of a loop, subject to angular constraints (supercoiling). The denaturation curves are shifted towards lower or higher temperatures depending on the sign of the torque, and the UV absorption peaks are softened. The properties of supercoiled DNA can be deduced through the use of a numerical Legendre transform. In the homogeneous case, we find that for weak supercoiling, the phenomenological quadratic law relating the torsional energy to the number of unpaired bases is recovered.
dc.identifierhttps://arxiv.org/abs/q-bio/0407036
dc.identifierhttp://arxiv.org/abs/q-bio/0407036
dc.identifier.urihttp://salesiana.dossiersoluciones.com/handle/123456789/88405
dc.subjectBiomolecules
dc.subjectSoft Condensed Matter
dc.titleGeneralized Poland-Scheraga model for supercoiled DNA
dc.typetext

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