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DNA nanotechnology

Scaling up genelet circuits

Nature Chemistry volume 14, pages 1210–1211 (2022)Cite this article

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DNA nanotechnology and synthetic biology both aim to expand the range of dynamic behaviours exhibited by rationally programmed biomolecules. Now, the programmability of synthetic transcriptional circuits has been improved to enable synthesis of dynamic biomolecular circuits with unmatched complexity.

Researchers in DNA nanotechnology and synthetic biology alike envision the realization and control of molecular structures and processes that perform useful functions. Whereas synthetic biologists typically make use of the full biochemical machinery of the cell, DNA nanotechnologists tend to create almost everything from nucleic acids1,2. Both approaches have advantages, but also face major challenges. Now, writing in Nature Chemistry, a team led by Rebecca Schulman describes an approach that combines the programmability of DNA systems and the versatility of biochemical systems to greatly improve the ability to control non-equilibrium chemical reaction network kinetics3.

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Fig. 1: Programming the genelet circuits.

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Authors and Affiliations

  1. Department of Life Sciences, Pohang University of Science and Technology, Pohang, Republic of Korea

    Jongmin Kim

  2. Physik Department, Technische Universität München, Garching near Munich, Germany

    Friedrich C. Simmel

Authors
  1. Jongmin Kim
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  2. Friedrich C. Simmel
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Correspondence to Jongmin Kim or Friedrich C. Simmel.

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The authors declare no competing interests.

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Kim, J., Simmel, F.C. Scaling up genelet circuits. Nat. Chem. 14, 1210–1211 (2022). https://doi.org/10.1038/s41557-022-01069-x

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