Does DNA get affected by the concentration of the liquids around it?

[jedistartrek]

TL;DR

Hi

I would just like to know if DNA is affected by the concentration of liquids around it.

Thanks and best regards,

Hi

I would just like to know if DNA is affected by the concentration of liquids around it.

Thanks and best regards,

 

[jim mcnamara]

Concentration refers to the amount of stuff dissolved in a solvent, water is a solvent. So what you are asking is a bit turned around.
How about this:

Cell "insides" and their DNA are in a water medium, sometimes called the cytosol. So water is a given factor in living cells. pH - the amount of acid in the water:

Low pH decreases the solubility and can cause depurination and strand breakage. Low pH also stabilizes triple helices that contain pyrimidine-purine-pyrimidine and cytosine residues. High pH, up to 13, is less damaging and is used to denature nucleic acids. However, depurination [ removal of necessary purines, cytosine (C) and thymine (T) ] and strand breakage can still happen.

from: https://www.biosyn.com/faq/Does-the-pH-influence-the-stability-of-double-stranded-DNA.aspx
So it that sense - working backwards from the usual definitions - less water and more acid is not good.

The way you phrased your question makes it hard to interpret. You change your body's ' water concentration'
when you drink a large glass of water. Usually the concentration of a large number other molecule types affects all kinds of processes and other molecules, this concentration changes as your body hydrates and dehydrates.

Maybe what you really want is homeostasis, the body's system to keep [whatever] concentration interests you in a safe range -- in this case fluid balance.

 

[jedistartrek]

Oh ok. Thank you very much. I'll let you know again if I have any questions.

Glad to know someone's working on these solutions.

Thanks.

 

[jedistartrek]

It seems ironic they haven't fixed it by now.

 

[atyy]

The structure of DNA is affected by salt concentration. The most common form of DNA in physiological conditions is the B-form. Under some conditions, such as high salt concentration, the Z-form is favoured.
B-Form, A-Form, and Z-Form of DNA by Ross Hardison
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Z-DNA
High salt solution structure of a left-handed RNA double helix by Popenda, Milecki and Adamiak

 

[jedistartrek]

Oh great. I truly enjoyed the reading.