Formation of Stable DNA Loops by Incorporation of Nonpolar, Non‐Hydrogen‐Bonding Nucleoside Isosteres

Abstract

The stability of hairpin structures formed from oligonucleotides depends on the units in the loop region. When the nonpolar nucleoside isosteres 1–3 replace the natural nucleosides thymidine and deoxyadenosine in the loop linking two octanucleotides, the corresponding duplex DNAs are considerably more stable than the natural analogues.