DISSERTATION

______________________________________________________________________ Introduction
shorter structure than B-DNA. On the other hand, Z-DNA is left-handed and it is stable only at
high salt concentrations in order to minimize electrostatic repulsion, since the phosphate groups
in the backbone are closer to each other.
The genetic information is stored within the double helix structure of the DNA molecule by the
sequence of nucleobases. Besides encoding the formation of cell organelles and proteins, DNA
sequences are responsible for all physical traits and disease susceptibility. Therefore, the
knowledge of DNA sequences is priceless for biological research and fields like medical
diagnosis, genetic screening, forensic biology, environmental control and biotechnology,
among others.
Figure 1.4. Scheme of the secondary DNA structure.
1.2 DNA 8