Peptide Nucleic Acid

Peptide Nucleic Acids (PNAs) are synthetic DNA mimics that consist of nucleobases attached to a polyamide backbone. Cationic pyrimidine bis-PNAs can be used to sequence specifically bind to one strand of the DNA duplex, leaving the other strand free for various manipulations. Although many natural proteins are capable of targeting duplex DNA in a sequence-specific manner, it is difficult to design de novo proteins with the desired sequence specificity. This is why the ability of PNAs to sequence-specifically recognize duplex DNA has attracted considerable interest. The principle advantage that sets PNA oligomers apart from other chemically modified nucleic acids and nucleic acid-mimics is their remarkable and unparalleled ability to invade double-stranded DNA.