Single atom modification leads to enhanced nucleotide self-assembly: the role of cation bridging

We report that the ability of disodium 5′-deoxy-5′-thioguanosine-5′-monophosphate, Na2(5′-GSMP), to self-associate into a helical G-quadruplex structure in aqueous solution at pH 8 is significantly higher than that of disodium guanosine-5′-monophosphate, Na2(5′-GMP), which supports our earlier hypothesis regarding the importance of cation bridging.