Computer model enables design of complex DNA shapes
MIT biological engineers have created a new computer model that allows them to design the most complex three-dimensional DNA shapes ever produced, including rings, bowls, and geometric structures such as icosahedrons that resemble viral particles. This design program could allow researchers to build DNA scaffolds to anchor arrays of proteins and light-sensitive molecules called chromophores that mimic the photosynthetic proteins found in plant cells, or to create new delivery vehicles for drugs or RNA therapies, says Mark Bathe, an associate professor of biological engineering. “The general idea is to spatially organize proteins, chromophores, RNAs, and nanoparticles with nanometer-scale precision using DNA. The precise nanometer-scale control that we have over 3-D architecture is what is centrally unique in this approach,” says Bathe, the senior author of a paper describing the new design approach in the Dec. 3 issue of Nature Communications. The paper’s lead authors are postdoc Keyao Pan and former MIT postdoc Do-Nyun...