Nucleic acids (NAs) play critical roles in many fundamental biological processes including transcription and translation. Besides storing (DNA) and decoding (RNA) genetic information, they also perform an array of architectural, catalytic, and regulatory functions in the cell. The diverse structures that NAs adopt to accomplish these tasks go far beyond the canonical duplex or single-stranded RNA configuration. They are highly dynamic biopolymers that can undergo a variety of conformational changes, encoded in their sequence, in response to cellular signals. These transformations can generate non-canonical structures, dissipate cellular forces, regulate catalytic activity, or dictate recognition by ligands and can be further modulated by environmental conditions and the presence of modified and damaged nucleotides. Detailed knowledge of the structure, dynamics, and interactions of DNA and RNA is, therefore, key to understanding their physiological roles in health and disease.

There is growing evidence that the sequence-dependent flexibility of DNA and RNA plays a central role in guiding structural transitions towards specific functions. New tools and recent advances in experimental and computational methods have made it possible to visualize nucleic acid structure and dynamics at atomic resolution and over biological timescales, both in vitro and inside the cell. For example, hybrid approaches that integrate a broad range of biophysical and biochemical information have permitted elucidation of NA conformational ensembles and dynamic switches in complex biomolecular machines.

Powerful spectroscopic techniques can be used to extract rates of inter-conversion between different conformers by monitoring one molecule at a time or to characterize transitions to sparsely populated but functionally relevant conformers that have evaded direct detection. Still, our knowledge of how the structural flexibility of DNA and RNA directs their mechanism of action remains limited. Here, we aim to collect recent progress in understanding, at atomic detail, the molecular properties of nucleic acids that govern their biological roles.

In this Research Topic, we welcome Original Research, Methods, Mini Reviews, and Perspectives. The themes of this collection include but are not limited to the following broad areas:

 High-resolution structural and dynamics studies of DNA/RNA (and their complexes) using X-ray,
cryo-EM, NMR, MD simulations, and other advanced biophysical techniques.

 Biophysical properties of DNA/RNA (and their complexes) revealed by single-molecule FRET,
magnetic tweezers, SAXS, NMR, EPR, molecular modeling, chemical probing, etc.

 Non-canonical structures, folding, base-pairing and their dependence on sequence, modifications, and environmental conditions.

 Effect of damage and modifications on DNA/RNA structure, flexibility, and recognition by repair and regulatory proteins.

 In vivo studies of DNA/RNA conformation, binding, catalysis, etc.

 New technologies/hybrid methods for investigating DNA/RNA flexibility, folding, recognition, and
catalytic activity in vitro and in the cell.

 Large DNA/RNA-protein assembles and machines (nucleosomes, ribosomes, other RNPs)

Dr. Junji Iwahara is receiving funding from the company Pfizer Inc. All other Topic Editors declare no competing interests.

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Frontiers in Molecular Biosciences

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