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DNA computing

Spatially localized DNA domino

Nature Nanotechnology volume 12, pages 842–843 (2017)Cite this article

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Fast and scalable molecular logic circuits have been constructed by spatially localizing DNA hairpins on DNA origami scaffolds.

In electronic chips, multiple simple components are carefully positioned to collectively perform an integrated computation. Since the introduction of two-dimensional DNA origami nanostructures in 20061, researchers have considered using this matrix-like, uniquely addressable molecular array of nanometric pixels to implement chemical analogues of this concept. However, to ensure proper information flow in this molecular version of an electronic breadboard remains challenging. Now, writing in Nature Nanotechnology, Chatterjee et al.2 propose the use of an external fuel source to drive this flow by chain-polymerizing the tethered DNA components. This approach brings modularity, robustness and speed to the molecular chips, taking them one step closer to practical computational applications.

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Figure 1: Principle of DNA domino circuits.

References

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Authors and Affiliations

  1. Laboratoire Gulliver, Ecole Supérieure de Physique et de Chimie Industrielles, PSL Research University, and CNRS, Paris, France

    Yannick Rondelez

  2. Laboratoire Jean Perrin, Université Pierre et Marie Curie and CNRS, Paris, France

    André Estevez-Torres

Authors
  1. André Estevez-Torres
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  2. Yannick Rondelez
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Correspondence to André Estevez-Torres or Yannick Rondelez.

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Estevez-Torres, A., Rondelez, Y. Spatially localized DNA domino. Nature Nanotech 12, 842–843 (2017). https://doi.org/10.1038/nnano.2017.157

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