Exploration of the Interaction between Benzaldehyde in Almonds and Our DNA

Presenter Information

Megan Geitz, Minnesota State University, Mankato

Location

CSU 253/4/5

Start Date

4-4-2011 11:00 AM

End Date

4-4-2011 12:30 PM

Student's Major

Chemistry and Geology

Student's College

Science, Engineering and Technology

Mentor's Name

Danae Quirk Dorr

Mentor's Department

Chemistry and Geology

Mentor's College

Science, Engineering and Technology

Description

Benzaldehyde is the primary component of almond oil, and it is also found in other foods such as apricots and apples. The focus of this project was to demonstrate that benzaldehyde has the ability to bind to the nucleotides of our DNA and change the DNA in our cells. Through thin layer chromatography we have shown that benzaldehyde does react with the nitrogenous purine bases of DNA, adenosine and guanosine. These products have been explored using nuclear magnetic resonance. In addition, DNA has been treated with benzaldehyde. By using information obtained from the synthesized products and the DNA reaction, conclusions regarding the ability of benzaldehyde to form interactions with DNA were made.