Dehydrated DNA in B-form: Ionic liquids in rescue

The functional B-conformation of DNA succumbs to the A-form at low water activity. Methods for room temperature DNA storage that rely upon ‘anhydro-biosis’, thus, often encounter the loss of DNA activity due to the B→A-DNA transition. Here, we show that ionic liquids, an emerging class of green solvents, can induce conformational transitions in DNA and even rescue the dehydrated DNA in the functional B-form. CD spectroscopic analyses not only reveal rapid transition of A-DNA in 78% ethanol medium to B-conformation in presence of ILs, but also the high resistance of IL-bound B-form to transit to A-DNA under dehydration. Molecular dynamics simulations show the unique ability of ILs to disrupt Na+ ion condensation and form ‘IL spine’ in DNA minor groove to drive the A→B transition. Implications of these findings range from the plausible use of ILs as novel anhydrobiotic DNA storage medium to a switch for modulating DNA conformational transitions.