Peptide Nucleic Acids Analogs and Derivatives

Peptide Nucleic Acids (PNA) invented ten years ago are emerging rapidly as useful molecules in DNA hybridization and antisense techniques. Although therapeutic drugs based on PNA are still not in sight, applications in diagnostics, in particular in situ hybridization and PCR based systems, are making rapid strides. The simple structure of PNA in combination with impressive DNA mimicking properties has already provided inspiration to many synthetic organic chemists for designing and preparing several derivatives and analogs towards improving their physico-chemical and biological properties. This review which is not intended to be exhaustive, is aimed at highlighting the current progress in the areas of PNA chemistry, structure, hybridization, and applications. The various chemical backbone modifications of PNA reported till date are summarized in the context of DNA hybridization properties.