Rhythmic Pulsating Nano Engine Made From DNA Performs Complex Task With Efficient Driver-Follower Systems

An international team of scientists recently developed a new type of nano engine made from DNA origami. A clever mechanism drives this technology and can perform pulsating movements.

Novel DNA Nano Engine

This project results from the collaboration between Assistant Professor Petr Šulc from Arizona State University, Professor Michael Famulok from the University of Bonn, and Professor Nils G. Walter from the University of Michigan. The team used a computer model called oxDNA to gain insights into the design and operation of the leaf-spring nano engine.

This is the first time a chemically powered DNA nanotechnology motor has been successfully engineered. The structure is made of around 14,000 nucleotides w, forming the basic structural units of DNA. According to Šulc, simulating motion in such a large nanostructure would be impossible without oxDNA.

The new engine type resembles a hand grip strength trainer, strengthening a person's grip when used regularly. The user squeezes the handles together against the resistance of the spring, and when the grip is released, the spring pushes the handles back to their original position. The nanomotor uses a very similar principle but is about one million times smaller, with two handles connected by a spring in a V-shaped structure.

The scientists repurposed a mechanism without which no plants or animals would be on Earth. In every cell, a library contains the blueprints for all kinds of proteins each cell needs to perform its function. If the cell wants to produce a certain type of protein, it orders a copy from the blueprint, and the RNA polymerase enzyme has the transcript.

Šulc and his team attached an RNA polymerase to one of the handles in their nanomachine. In close proximity, they strained a DNA strand between the two handles, which was grabbed by the polymerase to copy. The RNA polymerase drives the pulsating movements by pulling itself along the strand and pulling the second-hand bit by bit towards the first one.

Just like other motors, the nanomotor also needs energy. The "alphabet soup" provides this energy, from which the polymerase produces the transcripts. Every one of the letters represented by nucleotides has a small tail made of triphosphate. The nanomotor uses this three-phosphate group to serve as fuel.

Promising Applications of Bio-Nanotechnology

DNA and RNA serve as the basic molecules of life, which fulfill many functions, such as the storage of information and the transfer of genetic codes in living cells. They also have promising applications in nanotechnology, where engineered DNA and RNA are used in assembling nanoscale structures and devices.

This process is called self-assembly. Šulc and his colleagues use computational modeling and design software to develop building blocks that assemble into the desired shape at nanoscale resolution. This mechanism can be applied in molecular robotics, therapeutics, diagnostics, and building new materials.