Sequence complementarity

Jackson AL, Burchard J, Schelter J et al (2006) Widespread siRNA off-target transcript silencing mediated by seed region sequence complementarity. RNA 12 1179-1187... 

Hall, B. D., and S. Spiegelman, Sequence complementarity of T2-DNA and T2 specific RNA. Proc. Natl. Acad. Sci. 

Specificity of conventional protein enzymes is provided by precise molecular fit. The mutual recognition of an enzyme and is substrate is the result of various intermolecular forces which are almost always strongly dominated by hydrophobic interaction. In contrast, specificity of catalytic RNAs is provided by base pairing (see for example the hammerhead ribozyme in Figure 1) and to a lesser extent by tertiary interactions. Both are the results of hydrogen bond specificity. Metal ions too, in particular Mg2+, are often involved in RNA structure formation and catalysis. Catalytic action of RNA on RNA is exercised in the cofolded complexes of ribozyme and substrate. Since the formation of a ribozyme s catalytic center which operates on another RNA molecule requires sequence complementarity in parts of the substrate, ribozyme specificity is thus predominantly reflected by the sequence and not by the three-dimensional structure of the isolated substrate. 

Sequence complementarity refers to the matching of a sequence in a strand of DNA with that in another in terms of the ability of the two to form complementary base pairs. 

All the interactions between nucleic acid molecules that help express genetic information involve base-pairing between complementary sequences. Complementarity is sometimes defined as selective stickiness. Complementary molecules fit together. In the case of nucleic acids, complementarity generally involves base pairing. For example, mRNA is complementary to one strand of DNA, and the anticodon of tRNA is complementary to the codon in mRNA. Replication, transcription, and translation all involve base-pairing at several levels. 

Igney EH, Krammer P (2002) Death and anti-death tumor resistance to apoptosis. Nat Rev Cancer 2 277-288 Jackson AL, Burchard J, Leake D, Reynolds A, Schelter J, Guo J, Johnson JM, Lim L, Karpilow J, Nichols K, Marshall W, Khvorova A, Linsley PS (2006) Widespread siRNA "off-target" transcript silencing mediated by seed region sequence complementarity. RNA 12 1179-1187... 

DNA hybridization Chemical interaction of DNA based on the ability of ssDNA to form a helix, dsDNA with a counterpart exhibiting nucleotide sequence complementarity. A process of the formation of dsDNA from ss polynucleotide chains based on complementary base pairing. 

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