Point Mutation Assay by Affinity Capillary Electrophoresis Using Poly(ethylene glycol)-oligodeoxyribonucleotide block copolymers

An affinity capillary electrophoresis was developed for detecting a point mutation of single-stranded DNA (ssDNA). Poly(ethylene glycol)-oligodeoxyribonucleo-tide block copolymers (PEG-b-ODN) were prepared to use as a novel affinity ligand. Optimization of the analytical conditions, such as the salt concentration of running buffer, the capillary temperature and the base number of the copolymer, gave two distinct peaks for wild-type (WT) and point-mutated ssDNA (MT) on the electropherogram, allowing for the facile discrimination of the single-base difference.