Tetrahedral DNA hybrids with tetrakis(p-hydroxyphenyl)methane cores hybridize in a sequence-specific fashion at much higher temperatures than isolated linear duplexes. Dinucleotide DNA arms suffice to induce the formation of a solid at room temperature; this demonstrates the strength of multivalent binding. The graphic shows a view of a modeled assembly.
Two teams have recently reported that gold nanoparticles, loaded with DNA sequences on their surface, can be induced to form defined three‐dimensional crystals through duplex formation (see image) between “sticky ends”. Crystallites up to several micrometers in size are detected by small‐angle X‐ray scattering. The work is discussed in this Highlight.
Crystallization, as a process, is difficult to predict and obtaining high‐quality crystals is more of an art than a solved technological problem. DNA nanotechnology now delivers design‐based crystals with unit‐cell dimensions on the nanometer scale that can be generated from oligonucleotides (see image) and that hold promise for many applications.
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