DNA motor 'walks' along nanotube, transports tiny particle
PUBLIC RELEASE DATE:
17-Dec-2013
Contact: Emil Venere
venere@purdue.edu
765-494-4709
Purdue University
DNA motor 'walks' along nanotube, transports tiny particle
WEST LAFAYETTE, Ind. - Researchers have created a new type of molecular motor made of DNA and demonstrated its potential by using it to transport a nanoparticle along the length of a carbon nanotube.
The design was inspired by natural biological motors that have evolved to perform specific tasks critical to the function of cells, said Jong Hyun Choi, a Purdue University assistant professor of mechanical engineering.
Whereas biological motors are made of protein, researchers are trying to create synthetic motors based on DNA, the genetic materials in cells that consist of a sequence of four chemical bases: adenine, guanine, cytosine and thymine. The walking mechanism of the synthetic motors is far slower than the mobility of natural motors. However, the natural motors cannot be controlled, and they don't function outside their natural environment, whereas DNA-based motors are more stable and might be switched on and off, Choi said.
"We are in the very early stages of developing these kinds of synthetic molecular motors," he said.
New findings were detailed in a research paper published this month in the journal Nature Nanotechnology.
In coming decades, such molecular motors might find uses in drug delivery, manufacturing and chemical processing.
More:
http://www.eurekalert.org/pub_releases/2013-12/pu-dm121713.php