SCIENCE IN THE NEWS DAILY
DNA Twisted into Boxes
from Nature News
A multidisciplinary team of researchers has created tiny DNA strongboxes measuring just 30 nanometres on each side. The boxes, which can be unlocked with a gene 'key', could be used for drug delivery or as sensors.
The boxes are the latest novelty to emerge from 'DNA origami,' the technique by which researchers build structures out of DNA. They use oligonucleotides, short snippets of nucleic acid bearing genetic information, to fold longer strands of DNA into a complex structure. Each box is large enough to hold a single ribosome--the cell's machine for making proteins. Previously, researchers have built tubes and even a map of the Americas using the technique.
The latest work uses the same principle. It's just a little more complicated, according to team member Jørgen Kjems, a chemist at Aarhus University in Denmark.
Read more ...
Science in the Media
Newspapers:
Magazines and Web Sites:
The Science-Media Intersection:
Subscribe to Our Content!
Visit our RSS Feeds page to choose among 13 customized feeds, or create a free My AmSci account to request an email notice whenever a specified author, department or discipline appears online.