The development and applications of organic/DNA molecules for the use of DNA detection systems are reported here. In particular, two different hybrids are synthesized: DNA/polymer hybrids and small-molecule DNA hybrids. DNA/polymer hybrids are especially useful considering that their functionality may be varied according to the polymer selected. The hybrids are formed via ringopening metathesis polymerizations (ROMP) and polymer termination of cyclooctene (COE) with a nitrobenzyl ester group. The nitrobenzyl ester capping agent serves two purposes: (1) it contains an acetate group that can be modified with DNA in two steps, and (2) it allows characterization using 1 H and 13C NMR spectroscopy and UV-Vis spectroscopy. However, the capping agent produced an active carbene that reacted with the olefins along the polymer backbone, thus cleaving the polymer and yielding undesired polymer chain lengths. To circumvent this problem, the time allowed for capping the polymer was decreased. Additionally, an aliquot of the COE polymer was removed before capping to use as a control. Unexpected polymer chain lengths and high poly-dispersity indices (PDIs) showed that the carbene was still too active, although Mn (number average molecular weight) improved for the capped polymer with decreasing reaction times.

Last modified

• 07/12/2018

Creator

• Julianne Gibbs
• SonBinh T. Nguyen
• Jonathan R. Davila
• Christine Dettmer

DOI

• https://doi.org/10.21985/N2VQ5D

Keyword

• Volume 1

Date created

• 2004

Resource type

• Article

Rights statement

• In Copyright