Atomic Force Microscope Studies on Condensation of Plasmid DNA with Functionalized Fullerenes

DNA condensation by a fullerene vector has been imaged at the molecular level by atomic force microscopy (AFM); analysis of a mixture of plasmid DNA and DNA-binding fullerene with the aid of this carbonaceous vector provided the first information on the mechanism of transfection. The picture shows AFM images of pBR322 DNA in the absence of (left) and partially condensed by the fullerene (right).