Abstract
DNA conformation and stability are critical for the normal cell functions, which control many cellular processes in life, such as replication, transcription, DNA repair, etc. The accumulation of amyloid-β peptide (Aβ) and Copper (Cu) are the etiological factors for neurodegenerative diseases and hypothesized that they can cause DNA instability. In the current investigation, we studied copper and Aβ(1-16) induced conformation and stability changes in CAG/CTG sequences and found alterations from B-DNA to altered B-conformation. Further, the interaction of the copper and Aβ(1-16) with CAG/CTG sequences was studied by molecular docking modeling and results indicated that the interaction of copper and Aβ(1-16) was through the hydrogen bond formation between adenine, guanine, and cytocine. This study illustrates the role of the copper and Aβ(1-16) in modulating the DNA conformation and stability.