Investigation of the Electrochemical Interaction Behavior of DNA with 5-Fluorouracil Derivatives

Although many 5-Fluorouracil derivatives have been synthesized and identified, there are few reports on the interaction modes of different anti-carcinogen 5-Fluorouracil derivatives with Deoxyribonucleic acid (DNA). In this study, five new anti-carcinogen 5-Fluorouracil derivatives with DNA were investigated, i.e. 5-FU-Asp, 5-Fu-Trp, 5-FU-Ser, 5-FU-Tyr, and 5-FU-Phe, and their DNA binding specificities were compared by electrochemical means with previous reported DNA ligands. Meanwhile, the cyclic voltammetry has been proved to be powerful for the elucidation of interactions between DNA and 5-Fluorouracil derivatives, with Fe(CN)63-/4-as electroactive indicator of the intercalative interaction dominance. Using this electrochemical approach and Deoxyribonucleic acid (DNA) modified gold electrodes prepared by the dry adsorptive method, the electrochemical behaviors and modes of 5-Fluorouracil derivatives targeting DNA were well studied. The binding of 5-Fluorouracil derivatives with DNA, analyzed in terms of the cooperative Hill model, yields different association constants and binding numbers. This study serves as a good reference for synthesis, structural characterization of novel 5-Fluorouracil derivatives.