Panorama of DNA hairpin folding observed via diffusion-decelerated fluorescence correlation spectroscopy

Based on a confocal microscopy platform, we extended the FCS time window by three orders of magnitude to the s timescale by attaching a polystyrene microsphere. We simultaneously monitored the relaxations of multiple intermediates involved in DNA hairpin folding, thus offering a much more detailed view of the kinetics of hairpin folding experimentally.