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DNA possesses various chemical and physical properties which make it important in biological analysis. The opportunity for DNA to 'meet' capillary-based microsystems is rapidly increasing owing to the expanding development of miniaturization. Novel capillary-based methods can provide favourable platforms for DNA–ligand interaction assay, DNA translocation study, DNA separation, DNA aptamer selection, DNA amplification assay, and DNA digestion. Meanwhile, DNA exhibits great potential in the fabrication of new capillary-based biosensors and enzymatic bioreactors. Moreover, DNA has received significant research interest in improving capillary electrophoresis (CE) performance. We focus on highlighting the advantages of combining DNA and capillary-based microsystems. The general trend presented in this review suggests that the 'meeting' has offered a stepping stone for the application of DNA and capillary-based microsystems in the field of analytical chemistry. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Biomolecule-immobilized microscale systems present promising potential in the analysis field based on their reduced reagent consumption, improved analysis speed, automated processing, and high throughput. To increase the biomolecule binding capacity, improve the biomolecule activity and stability, enhance renewability, and develop easy-to-operate procedures, novel immobilization approaches have attracted tremendous attention recently. In this review, a variety of methods employed in preparing state-of-the-art DNA-, protein-, and polysaccharide-immobilized microscale systems are summarized. We focus on highlighting the merits of applying the click reaction, the nanomaterial-based strategy, encapsulation, layer-by-layer assembly, and the reversible immobilization strategy for improving the biomolecule-immobilized microscale system performance. Moreover, the utilization of innovative biomolecule-immobilized microscale systems for biosensing, affinity chromatography separation, bioreaction, and enantioseparation is also discussed. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Click chemistry has attracted tremendous attention for the fabrication of novel microscale systems based on its high reaction efficiency, satisfactory versatility and simple processing. Meanwhile, microscale systems also provide desirable analytical platforms for click reaction study. Herein, we review the employment of click reactions for developing state-of-the-art microchip-based and capillary-based systems. The advantages of innovative off-stoichiometry thiol–ene (OSTE)-microchips, bio-functionalized microchips and monolithic microsystems for chemical and biological assays are highlighted. Moreover, the potential of microscale systems applied for click reaction investigation is indicated as well. This article presents an overview of the recent developments in the combination of microscale systems and click chemistry. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The epigenetic modification of nucleic acids represents one of the most significant areas of study in the field of nucleic acids because it makes gene regulation more complex and heredity more complicated, thus indicating its profound impact on aspects of heredity, growth, and diseases. The recent characterization of epigenetic modifications of DNA and RNA using chemical labelling strategies has promoted the discovery of these modifications, and the newly developed single-base or single-cell resolution mapping strategies have enabled large-scale epigenetic studies in eukaryotes. Due to these technological breakthroughs, several new epigenetic marks have been discovered that have greatly extended the scope and impact of epigenetic modifications in nucleic acids over the past few years. Because epigenetics is reversible and susceptible to environmental factors, it could potentially be a promising direction for clinical medicine research. In this review, we have comprehensively discussed how these epigenetic marks are involved in disease, including the pathogenesis, prevention, diagnosis and treatment of disease. These findings have revealed that the epigenetic modification of nucleic acids has considerable significance in various areas from methodology to clinical medicine and even in biomedical applications. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

We present here a novel and efficient method for 5mC detection using a DNA strand exchange reaction (SER) strategy. This enzyme-free method needs no pre-treatment of target DNAs and can be adapted to most of the target duplexes under physiological conditions. The high sequence selectivity of this method can distinguish 5mC from normal cytosine in an accurate manner. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Establishing an intimate relationship between similar individuals is the beginning of self-extension. Various self-similar chiral nanomaterials can be designed using an individual-to-family approach, accomplishing self-extension. This self-similarity facilitates chiral communication, transmission, and amplification of synthons. We focus on describing the marriage of discrete cages to develop self-similar extended frameworks. The advantages of utilizing cage-based frameworks for chiral recognition, enantioseparation, chiral catalysis and sensing are highlighted. To further promote self-extension, fractal chiral nanomaterials with self-similar and iterated architectures have attracted tremendous attention. The beauty of a fractal family tree lies in its ability to capture the complexity and interconnectedness of a family's lineage. As a type of fractal material, nanoflowers possess an overarching importance in chiral amplification due to their large surface-to-volume ratio. This review summarizes the design and application of state-of-the-art self-similar chiral nanomaterials including cage-based extended frameworks, fractal nanomaterials, and nanoflowers. We hope this formation process from individuals to families will inherit and broaden this great chirality.

The cooperative relationship between biomolecules and nanomaterials makes up a beautiful tale about nanoscale chiral sensing and separation. Biomolecules are considered a fabulous chirality 'donor' to develop chiral sensors and separation systems. Nature has endowed biomolecules with mysterious chirality. Various nanomaterials with specific physicochemical attributes can realize the transmission and amplification of this chirality. We focus on highlighting the advantages of combining biomolecules and nanomaterials in nanoscale chirality. To enhance the sensors' detection sensitivity, novel cooperation approaches between nanomaterials and biomolecules have attracted tremendous attention. Moreover, innovative biomolecule-based nanocomposites possess great importance in developing chiral separation systems with improved assay performance. This review describes the formation of a network based on nanomaterials and biomolecules mainly including DNA, proteins, peptides, amino acids, and polysaccharides. We hope this tale will record the perpetual relation between biomolecules and nanomaterials in nanoscale chirality.

N 6 -Methyladenosine (m 6 A) represents a relatively abundant modification in eukaryotic RNA. Because m 6 A has similar properties to adenosine and a low reactivity, limited research has been focused on this nucleoside. In this study, we revealed an important intermediate in the oxidation of m 6 A through the bicarbonate-activated peroxide system. Over the course of oxidation, we found a new mechanism in which N 6 -hydroxymethyladenosine (hm 6 A), N 6 -formyladenosine (f 6 A) and N 6 -hydroperoxymethyladenosine (oxm 6 A) were intermediate products, and adenosine was the final product. In this study, oxm 6 A was isolated using HPLC and characterized by mass spectrometry, NMR and diphenyl-1-pyrenylphosphine (DPPP) fluorescence detection. This study provides a new modified nucleoside and demonstrates oxidative demethylation of m 6 A by reactive oxygen species at the nucleobase level and in RNA strands.

The methylation status of each CpG site can be monitored by Fl-dGTP incorporated asymmetric PCR assay. The ability of quantitative detection makes it a good choice for detecting partial methylation at CpG sites compared with others. And the monitoring is not limited to sites within PCR primers or restriction enzyme-recognition sites.

Treatment of DNA containing 5-formylcytosine with hot piperidine produced a cleaved band at the position of 5-formylcytosine in DNA sequences. After oxidation with KRuO4, 5-hydroxymethylcytosine could also be detected using the same method. Using our strategy, we could detect 5-hydroxymethylcytosine and 5-formylcytosine respectively.