Search research articles

ABOUT JoVE

Overview Leadership Blog JoVE Help Center

AUTHORS

Publishing Process Editorial Board Scope & Policies Peer Review FAQ Submit

LIBRARIANS

Testimonials Subscriptions Access Resources Library Advisory Board FAQ

RESEARCH

JoVE Journal Methods Collections JoVE Encyclopedia of Experiments Archive

EDUCATION

JoVE Core JoVE Business JoVE Science Education JoVE Lab Manual Faculty Resource Center Faculty Site

Terms & Conditions of Use

Related Concept Videos

Ribozymes

Ribozymes

The term ribozyme is used for RNA that can act as an enzyme. Ribozymes are mainly found in selected viruses, bacteria, plant organelles, and lower eukaryotes. Ribozymes were first discovered in 1982 when Tom Cech’s laboratory observed Group I introns acting as enzymes. This was shortly followed by the discovery of another ribozyme, Ribonulcease P, by Sid Altman’s laboratory. Both Cech and Altman received the Nobel Prize in chemistry in 1989 for their work on ribozymes.
Ribozymes can be...

You might also read

Related Articles

Articles linked to this work by shared authors, journal, and citation graph.

Sort by

Same author

Redox- and Photo-Responsive Fe<sup>3+/2+</sup>-Cross-Linked Carboxymethyl Cellulose Methacrylate Dissipative Gels: Synthesis and Applications.

ACS applied materials & interfaces·2026

Same author

Intracellular logic computing with DNA tetrahedron processors enables precision cancer theranostics.

Signal transduction and targeted therapy·2026

Same author

Dictated cell adhesion and migration using microfluidic-controlled synthetic hydrogels exhibiting programmable viscoelasticities.

Journal of materials chemistry. B·2026

Same author

Photoactivated Signaling Networks using DNA-Based Synthetic Organelles as Biomimetic Protocells.

Angewandte Chemie (International ed. in English)·2026

Same author

Dynamic Switchable and Transient DNA Condensates Driven by Aptamer-Ligand or Ion-Nucleobase Bridged Complexes.

Small (Weinheim an der Bergstrasse, Germany)·2026

Same author

Allosteric ligand-aptamer complexes orchestrate supramolecular or transient catalytic, transcription and fibrinogenesis processes.

Chemical science·2026

Same journal

An intrinsically stretchable nanowire-based sensing patch for wearable analysis of sweat chloride ion composition.

Chemical communications (Cambridge, England)·2026

Same journal

A sterically rigid-flexible balanced NHC-Pd precatalyst for room-temperature solvent-free C-N coupling of benzocyclic amines.

Chemical communications (Cambridge, England)·2026

Same journal

Portable fluorescent conjugated microporous polymer sensor coupled with a smartphone for on-site Fe<sup>3+</sup> detection in water.

Chemical communications (Cambridge, England)·2026

Same journal

Accelerated discovery of NO<sub>3</sub>RR single-atom catalysts <i>via</i> high-throughput DFT and machine learning.

Chemical communications (Cambridge, England)·2026

Same journal

Wafer-scale robust graphene electronics under industrial processing conditions.

Chemical communications (Cambridge, England)·2026

Same journal

Subnanoscale IrW oxide anodes: breaking immiscibility for high activity and durability in water electrolysis.

Chemical communications (Cambridge, England)·2026

See all related articles

Search research articles

Related Experiment Video

Updated: May 31, 2026

DNAzyme 10-23 - Based Nanomachines for Nucleic Acid Recognition

DNAzyme 10-23 - Based Nanomachines for Nucleic Acid Recognition

Published on: February 9, 2024

pH-programmable DNAzyme nanostructures.

Simcha Shimron¹, Nimrod Magen, Johann Elbaz

¹Institute of Chemistry, The Hebrew University of Jerusalem, Jerusalem, Israel.

Chemical Communications (Cambridge, England)

|July 7, 2011

Summary

This summary is machine-generated.

Engineered DNA nanostructures function as pH-switchable devices. These nanodevices control the activation and deactivation of DNAzymes that mimic horseradish peroxidase activity.

More Related Videos

DNA Nanotubes as a Versatile Tool to Study Semiflexible Polymers

DNA Nanotubes as a Versatile Tool to Study Semiflexible Polymers

Published on: October 25, 2017

DNA-Tethered RNA Polymerase for Programmable In vitro Transcription and Molecular Computation

DNA-Tethered RNA Polymerase for Programmable In vitro Transcription and Molecular Computation

Published on: December 29, 2021

Related Experiment Videos

Last Updated: May 31, 2026

DNAzyme 10-23 - Based Nanomachines for Nucleic Acid Recognition

DNAzyme 10-23 - Based Nanomachines for Nucleic Acid Recognition

Published on: February 9, 2024

DNA Nanotubes as a Versatile Tool to Study Semiflexible Polymers

DNA Nanotubes as a Versatile Tool to Study Semiflexible Polymers

Published on: October 25, 2017

DNA-Tethered RNA Polymerase for Programmable In vitro Transcription and Molecular Computation

DNA-Tethered RNA Polymerase for Programmable In vitro Transcription and Molecular Computation

Published on: December 29, 2021

Area of Science:

Biotechnology and Nanotechnology
Molecular Biology
Chemical Biology

Background:

DNA nanostructures offer precise control over molecular interactions.
DNAzymes with enzymatic activity, such as horseradish peroxidase (HRP) mimicry, are valuable tools.
Developing controllable systems for DNAzyme activity is crucial for advanced applications.

Purpose of the Study:

To design and characterize pH-switchable DNA nanostructures.
To utilize these nanostructures for the controlled activation and deactivation of HRP-mimicking DNAzymes.

Main Methods:

Engineering of two distinct DNA nanostructures: a nucleic acid functional hairpin and a DNA tweezers assembly.
Integration of these nanostructures with HRP-mimicking DNAzymes.
Investigation of the pH-dependent switching behavior of the DNA nanostructure-DNAzyme system.

Main Results:

Demonstrated that the engineered DNA nanostructures act as effective pH-switchable controllers.
Successfully achieved 'ON-OFF' regulation of the HRP-mimicking DNAzyme activity.
The system exhibits reversible switching in response to changes in pH.

Conclusions:

The developed DNA nanostructures provide a novel platform for creating responsive molecular devices.
This pH-switchable system enables precise temporal control over DNAzyme activity.
Potential applications in biosensing, diagnostics, and targeted drug delivery.