Reduction of DNA Folding by Ionic Liquids and Its Effects on the Analysis of DNA–Protein Interaction Using Solid‐State Nanopore

DNA folding is not desirable for solid‐state nanopore techniques when analyzing the interaction of a biomolecule with its specific binding sites on DNA since the signal derived from the binding site could be buried by a large signal from the folding of DNA nearby. To resolve the problems associated with DNA folding, ionic liquids (ILs), which are known to interact with DNA through charge–charge and hydrophobic interactions are employed. 1‐n‐butyl‐3‐methylimidazolium chloride (C4mim) is found to be the most effective in lowering the incident of DNA folding during its translocation through solid‐state nanopores (4–5 nm diameter). The rate of folding signals from the translocation of DNA–C4mim is decreased by half in comparison to that from the control bare DNA. The conformational changes of DNA upon complexation with C4mim are further examined using atomic force microscopy, showing that the entanglement of DNA which is common in bare DNA is not observed when treated with C4mim. The stretching effect of C4mim on DNA strands improves the detection accuracy of nanopore for identifying the location of zinc finger protein bound to its specific binding site in DNA by lowering the incident of DNA folding. The interactions between DNA and ionic liquids (ILs) are investigated and it is found that IL (1‐n‐butyl‐3‐methylimidazolium chloride) effectively lowers the incidence of DNA folding during translocation through nanopores without affecting the binding characteristics of target protein, which improves the accuracy of signal readouts for the analysis of DNA–protein interactions.