DNA Origami-Based Self-Assembly
Jun 22, 2009 video
Cartoon depiction of DNA origami, a process that can be used to self-assemble shapes that are of nanometer dimensions — 100 nanometers is about 1,000 times shorter than the width of an average human hair. One long single strand of DNA (gray) is used as a 'scaffold,' which is manipulated to form a lattice through base-pairing with numerous 'staples' – short, chemically-synthesized DNA strands (colored) that are specially designed using computer software. DNA origami is now being used to create 3D structures with the goal of building nanoscale tools for studying natural systems. At the Wyss, we are exploring whether these programmable nanomaterials might be useful for drug-delivery or regenerative-medicine applications.
(Animation by Shawn Douglas, formerly of the Shih and Church labs, now a Wyss Enabling Technology Development Fellow)