Advances in Structural and Functional Properties of G-Quadruplexes and Aptamers
A special issue of International Journal of Molecular Sciences (ISSN 1422-0067). This special issue belongs to the section "Molecular Biology".
Deadline for manuscript submissions: 31 August 2025 | Viewed by 535
Special Issue Editors
Interests: G-quadruplex; aptamers; nucleic acid chemistry; circular dichroism; electrophoresis
Special Issues, Collections and Topics in MDPI journals
Interests: G-quadruplex; aptamers; nucleic acid chemistry; nuclear magnetic resonance; electrophoretic techniques; circular dichroism; G4-catalysts
Special Issues, Collections and Topics in MDPI journals
Interests: G-quadruplex; nucleic acid secondary structures; aptamers; nucleic acid chemistry
Special Issues, Collections and Topics in MDPI journals
Special Issue Information
Dear Colleagues,
G-quadruplexes (G4s) are one of the more stable alternative conformations that nucleic acids can adopt. G-rich nucleic acid sequences are inclined to form four-stranded structures, whose constitutive unit is the G-tetrad, a square planar arrangement of four guanosines stabilized by Hoogsteen hydrogen bonds. G4s possess a remarkable structural variability, depending on strand molecularity or arrangement, presence and type of loops, glycosidic conformation of G-residues, and groove size. The G4 biological importance is attested by their occurrence in several regions of the human genome, such as telomeres and gene promoters. In addition to endogenous G4s playing a key role in numerous biological processes, very promising exogenous G4s are known, due to their ability to modulate the activity of different protein targets. Indeed, a significant number of synthetic oligonucleotides, selected by the combinatorial technique SELEX (Systematic Evolution of Ligands by EXponential enrichment) adopt G4 structures (G4 aptamers). The notable thermal stability and structural variability of G4s constitute a valuable resource to design new aptamers with several applications in therapeutics, diagnostics, food quality control, drug development and delivery. Furthermore, suitable G4s are also endowed with catalytic properties and have proven to be able to induce enantioselectivity in several asymmetric reactions. This Special Issue aims to collect a selection of papers focused on advances in the field of G-quadruplexes, aptamers and relationships between their structural features and functionalities.
Dr. Antonella Virgilio
Dr. Veronica Esposito
Prof. Dr. Aldo Galeone
Guest Editors
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Keywords
- G-quadruplex structure
- aptamer
- DNAzyme
- catalytic G-quadruplexes
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