Abstract To investigate the effect of PCR amplification with nano-silver on DNA synthesis and its mechanism, the effect of PCR amplification with nano-silver on DNA synthesis was obtained by the observation of different sizes(38, 61, 83 and 130 nm) and different concentrations(5, 10, 25, 50, 100 and 250 μg/mL) of nano-silver particles in polymerase chain reactions (PCRs). and the UV-visible spectroscopy was used to analyze its molecular mechanism. The results showed that when PCRs were exposed to four sizes of nano-silver particles respectively within a dose range, the effect of PCR amplification with 38 and 61 nm nano-silver groups was much stronger than that of 83 and 130 nm nano-silver groups. When PCRs were exposed to different concentrations of nano-silver particles, we found that nano-silver could inhibit the DNA synthesis obviously when the dose ≥10 μg/mL, and its inhibition showed a significant dose - effect relationship. Integrated agarose gel electrophoresis and UV-visible spectrum, we claim that the adsorption of polymerase, primers and templates by nano-silver is the main reason for inhibition of DNA synthesis. In addition, a small amount of Ag+ released by sliver nanoparticles is another key factor for inhibition of the DNA synthesis.
