Macromolecular structure, dynamics and polyelectrolyte properties of large biological polymers, in particular, polynucleotides and nucleic acids are being studies by electric-field induced dichroism and birefringence methods. Theoretical and computational methods supplement the experimental work. The current research is a response to the fact that the knowledge of the structural effects of specific base-pair sequences on DNA translation and replication is still at a primitive stage. Only one or two biologically significant protein-DNA complexes from which such structural effects could be inferred have been crystallized and their structure determined. Using electro-optic birefringence and dichroism, it is now possible to quantitatively explore DNA structures in solution, albeit with less resolution than x-ray diffraction of crystals, but uninhibited by the problem of forming crystalline complexes. The two principal projects currently being pursued are the structural effects of the triplet sequence CAC/GTG and the flexibility of the A form of DNA.
