Unzipping of DNA with correlated base-sequence
Abstract
We consider force-induced unzipping transition for a heterogeneous DNA model with a correlated base-sequence. Both finite-range and long-range correlated situations are considered. It is shown that finite-range correlations increase stability of DNA with respect to the external unzipping force. Due to long-range correlations the number of unzipped base-pairs displays two widely different scenarios depending on the details of the base-sequence: either there is no unzipping phase-transition at all, or the transition is realized via a sequence of jumps with magnitude comparable to the size of the system. Both scenarios are different from the behavior of the average number of unzipped base-pairs (non-self-averaging). The results can be relevant for explaining the biological purpose of correlated structures in DNA.
Keywords
Cite
@article{arxiv.cond-mat/0406718,
title = {Unzipping of DNA with correlated base-sequence},
author = {A. E. Allahverdyan and Zh. S. Gevorkian and Chin-Kun Hu and Ming-Chya Wu},
journal= {arXiv preprint arXiv:cond-mat/0406718},
year = {2009}
}
Comments
22 pages, revtex4, 14 eps figures; reprinted in the June 15, 2004 issue of Virtual Journal of Biological Physics Research