Polyelectrolyte Behavior at Electrodes

Apart from early characterizations of nucleic acids by their oscillopolaro-graphic activity, or their damping of oxygen maxima, most information 

The investigation of electrochemical behavior of nucleic acids involves adsorption and various adsorbed states, since adsorption determines the electron exchange. Adsorption depends on the conformation of nucleic acids in solution, which is a function of  

As for other macromolecules, adsorption takes place only with segments of the whole chain molecule, whereas the connecting parts in between form loops into the bulk of the solution. The surface density of segments at a given potential depends on the flexibility of the whole chain and on the time necessary to reach saturation, which is a rather irreversible process. Therefore one has to distinguish between the d.m.e. and the h.m.d.e. (cf. Table 3). In this section, only results obtained by a.c. polarography in alkaline medium, where electron uptake is suppressed, will be discussed. 

Using the h.m.d.e., the slow adsorption kinetics are measurableuntil saturation is reached. The highest surface coverage without denaturation is in 

temperature with increasing temperature, the fading process is accelerated and at least two intermediates can be obtained, because the flexibility increases and the double helix becomes unstable (premelting and melting, cf. Section 4.4), 

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