Synergistic self-assembly of RNA and DNA molecules.
DNA has recently been used as a programmable 'smart' building block for the assembly of a wide range of nanostructures. It remains difficult, however, to construct DNA assemblies that are also functional. Incorporating RNA is a promising strategy to circumvent this issue as RNA is structurally related to DNA but exhibits rich chemical, structural and functional diversities. However, only a few examples of rationally designed RNA structures have been reported. Herein, we describe a simple, general strategy for the de novo design of nanostructures in which the self-assembly of RNA strands is programmed by DNA strands. To demonstrate the versatility of this approach, we have designed and constructed three different RNA-DNA hybrid branched nanomotifs (tiles), which readily assemble into one-dimensional nanofibres, extended two-dimensional arrays and a discrete three-dimensional object. The current strategy could enable the integration of the precise programmability of DNA with the rich functionality of RNA.
Department of Chemistry, Purdue University, West Lafayette, Indiana 47907, USA.
Seung Hyeon
SH
Ko
Min
M
Su
Chuan
C
Zhang
Alexander E
AE
Ribbe
Wen
W
Jiang
Chengde
C
Mao
D004247:DNA / Q000737:chemistry*; D049329:Nanostructures / Q000737:chemistry / Q000648:ultrastructure; D009693:Nucleic Acid Hybridization; D012313:RNA / Q000737:chemistry*; D013816:Thermodynamics
D012313:RNA; D004247:DNA