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Fullerene Cluster Assisted Self‐Assembly of Short DNA Strands into Semiconducting Nanowires
Author(s) -
Vittala Sandeepa Kulala,
Saraswathi Sajena Kanangat,
Joseph Joshy
Publication year - 2017
Publication title -
chemistry – a european journal
Language(s) - English
Resource type - Journals
SCImago Journal Rank - 1.687
H-Index - 242
eISSN - 1521-3765
pISSN - 0947-6539
DOI - 10.1002/chem.201703333
Subject(s) - nanoclusters , dna origami , dna nanotechnology , nanotechnology , nanowire , materials science , nanostructure , self assembly , nanomaterials , dna , fullerene , oligonucleotide , cluster (spacecraft) , nanoscopic scale , chemistry , organic chemistry , biochemistry , computer science , programming language
Programmable, hierarchical assembly of DNA nanostructures with precise organisation of functional components have been demonstrated previously with tiled assembly and DNA origami. However, building organised nanostructures with random oligonucleotide strands remains as an elusive problem. Herein, a simple and general strategy, in which nanoclusters of a fullerene derivative act as stapler motifs in bringing ordered nanoscale assembly of short oligonucleotide duplexes into micrometre‐sized nanowires, is described. In this approach, the fullerene derivative, by virtue of its amphiphilic structure and unique hydrophobic–hydrophilic balance, pre‐assembles to form 3–5 nm sized clusters in a mixture of DMSO–phosphate buffer, which further assists the assembly of DNA strands. The optimum cluster size, availability of DNA anchoring motifs and the nature of the DNA strands controls the structure of these nanomaterials. Furthermore, horizontal conductivity measurements through conductive AFM confirmed the charge transport properties of these nanowires. The current strategy could be employed to organise random DNA duplexes and tiles into functional nanostructures, and hence, open up new avenues in DNA nanotechnology.