ORGN 75 |
| The DNA double helix is stable and rigid, making it an ideal nanoscale construction element. Duplex DNA has been used as a passive framework to organize DNA, proteins, or nanoparticles, and active DNA nanomachines have been built. However, nanoscale assemblies in which DNA controls the structures of other macromolecules are rare. Here we use short (10-20 bp) DNA duplexes as scaffolds to control RNA structure. Based on the X-ray crystal structure of the 160-nucleotide P4-P6 RNA domain, pairs of sites for DNA scaffold attachment were chosen rationally. When the DNA scaffold is incompatible with the folded RNA structure, RNA misfolding is observed. The DNA scaffold is modulated reversibly by adding complementary DNA strands. Alternatively, the DNA scaffold is destroyed irreversibly by cleavage with a protein enzyme or by chemical scission of the DNA-RNA linkage. These findings will have substantial practical impact on DNA-based nanotechnology applications.
|
|
Materials, Devices, and Switches
1:00 PM-5:00 PM, Sunday, 13 March 2005 Convention Center -- Room 9, Oral
Division of Organic Chemistry |
