Accommodation of mispair aligned N(super 3)T-ethyl-N(super 3)T DNA interstrand cross link

The structural properties underpinning the differences in the immediate environment of a N(super 3)T-ethyl-N(super 3)T interstrand cross link that is inserted into a scaffold wherein the cross link is mispair-aligned is described. Results demonstrate that the lesion defined by mismatch-aligned minor groove N(super 3)T-ethyl-N(super 3)T cross-linked thymine bases produces very localized distortions in a DNA stem that may be difficult to recognize by repair mechanisms that are not transcription-or-replication-coupled.