Localized degradation of foreign DNA strands in cells: Only excising the first nucleotide of 5′ region

- We investigate intracellular degradation of foreign DNA strand by using DNA probes.
- We report a novel degradation behavior that only excises the first nucleotide of 5′ terminal of DNA strand.
- We propose an effective way to avoid degradation-caused false positive signal for intracellular assay.

Intracellular delivery of foreign DNA probes sharply increases the efficiency of various biodetection protocols. Spherical nucleic acid (SNA) conjugate is a new type of probe that consists of a dense oligonucleotide shell attached typically to a gold nanoparticle core. They are widely used as novel labels for in vitro biodetection and intracellular assay. However, the degradation of foreign DNA still remains a challenge that can cause significant signal leakage (false positive signal). Hence, the site and behavior of intracellular degradation need to be investigated. Herein, we discover a localized degradation behavior that only excises the first nucleotide of 5′ terminal from a DNA strand, whereas the residual portion of this strand is unbroken in MCF-7 cell. This novel degradation action totally differs from previous opinion that foreign DNA strand would be digested into tiny fragments or even individual nucleotides in cellular environment. On the basis of these findings, we propose a simple and effective way to avoid degradation-caused false positive that one can bypass the degradable site and choose a secure region to label fluorophore along the DNA stand, when using DNA probes for intracellular biodetection.