With extensive coverage of synthesis techniques and applications, this text describes chemical biology techniques which have gained significant impetus during the last five years. It focuses on the methods for obtaining modified and native nucleic acids, and their biological applications. Topics covered include:

chemical synthesis of modified RNA
expansion of the genetic alphabet in nucleic acids by creating new base pairs
chemical biology of DNA replication: probing DNA polymerase selectivity mechanisms with modified nucleotides
nucleic-acid-templated chemistry
chemical biology of peptide nucleic acids (PNA)
the interactions of small molecules with DNA and RNA
the architectural modules of folded RNAs
genesis and biological applications of locked nucleic acid (LNA)
small non-coding RNA in bacteria
microRNA-guided gene silencing
nucleic acids based therapies
innate immune recognition of nucleic acid
light-responsive nucleic acids for the spatiotemporal control of biological processes
DNA methylation
frameworks for programming RNA devices
RNA as a catalyst: The Diels-Alderase-Ribozyme
evolving an understanding of RNA function by in vitro approaches
the chemical biology of aptamers: synthesis and applications
nucleic acids as detection tools
bacterial riboswitch discovery and analysis

The Chemical Biology of Nucleic Acids is an essential compendium of the synthesis of nucleic acids and their biological applications for bioorganic chemists, chemical biologists, medicinal chemists, cell biologists, and molecular biologists.