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Synthesis and materialization of a reaction–diffusion French flag pattern

Nature Chemistry volume 9, pages 990–996 (2017)Cite this article

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Abstract

During embryo development, patterns of protein concentration appear in response to morphogen gradients. These patterns provide spatial and chemical information that directs the fate of the underlying cells. Here, we emulate this process within non-living matter and demonstrate the autonomous structuration of a synthetic material. First, we use DNA-based reaction networks to synthesize a French flag, an archetypal pattern composed of three chemically distinct zones with sharp borders whose synthetic analogue has remained elusive. A bistable network within a shallow concentration gradient creates an immobile, sharp and long-lasting concentration front through a reaction–diffusion mechanism. The combination of two bistable circuits generates a French flag pattern whose ‘phenotype’ can be reprogrammed by network mutation. Second, these concentration patterns control the macroscopic organization of DNA-decorated particles, inducing a French flag pattern of colloidal aggregation. This experimental framework could be used to test reaction–diffusion models and fabricate soft materials following an autonomous developmental programme.

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Figure 1: In a shallow gradient of morphogen, a bistable DNA network produces a Polish flag; a sharp and immobile concentration profile.
Figure 2: A DNA-based network with two self-activating nodes that repress each other generates two immobile fronts that repel each other.
Figure 3: The combination of two orthogonal bistable networks produces a French flag pattern of DNA concentration that can be simply reprogrammed.
Figure 4: Materialization of Polish and French flag patterns with conditional bead aggregation.

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Acknowledgements

We thank E. Frey for insightful discussions, A. Vlandas for help with gradient generation and B. Caller and D. Woods for comments on the text. Supported by European commission FET-Open (Ribonets, 323987), by ANR jeunes chercheurs programme (Dynano), by C'nano Ile-de-France (DNA2PROT) and by Ville de Paris Emergences programme (Morphoart).

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Authors and Affiliations

  1. Laboratoire Jean Perrin, Université Pierre et Marie Curie, 4 place Jussieu, Paris, 75005, France

    Anton S. Zadorin, Vadim Dilhas, Adrian Zambrano, Jean-Christophe Galas & André Estevez-Torres

  2. CNRS, UMR 8237, Paris, 75005, France

    Anton S. Zadorin, Vadim Dilhas, Adrian Zambrano, Jean-Christophe Galas & André Estevez-Torres

  3. LIMMS/CNRS-IIS, University of Tokyo, Komaba 4-6-2, Meguro-ku, Tokyo, Japan

    Yannick Rondelez & Guillaume Gines

  4. Ecole supérieure de physique et chimie industrielles, Laboratoire Gulliver, 10 rue Vauquelin, Paris, 75005, France

    Yannick Rondelez

  5. Ludwig-Maximilians-Universität München, Fakultät für Physik, Amalienstraße 54, Munich, 80799, Germany

    Georg Urtel

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  1. Anton S. Zadorin
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Contributions

A.S.Z., J.-C.G. and A.E.-T. performed most experiments and analysed the data. Y.R. and G.G. designed the network in Fig. 1 and J.-C.G. and A.E.-T. designed the networks in Figs 3 and  4. A.Z. and V.D. set up the bead experiments. G.U. performed critical control experiments. All the authors discussed the results. J.-C.G., A.S.Z., Y.R. and A.E.-T. designed research and J.-C.G. and A.E.-T. wrote the manuscript.

Corresponding authors

Correspondence to Jean-Christophe Galas or André Estevez-Torres.

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Zadorin, A., Rondelez, Y., Gines, G. et al. Synthesis and materialization of a reaction–diffusion French flag pattern. Nature Chem 9, 990–996 (2017). https://doi.org/10.1038/nchem.2770

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