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The DNA Helix

The DNA Helix

Deoxyribonucleic acid, or DNA, is the genetic material responsible for passing traits from generation to generation in all organisms and most viruses. DNA is composed of two strands of nucleotides that wind around each other to form a spring-like structure called a double helix. However, the double helix is not perfectly symmetrical. Instead, there are regularly occurring grooves in the structure. The major groove occurs where the sugar-phosphate backbones are relatively far apart. This space...

The DNA Helix

The DNA Helix

DNA as a Genetic Template

DNA as a Genetic Template

Two structural features of the DNA molecule provide a basis for the mechanisms of heredity: the four nucleotide bases and its double-stranded nature. The Watson-Crick model of double-helical DNA structure, proposed in 1952, drew heavily upon the X-ray crystallography work of researchers Rosalind Franklin and Maurice Wilkins. Watson, Crick, and Wilkins jointly received the Nobel Prize in Physiology or Medicine for their work in 1962. Franklin was, controversially, excluded from the prize for...

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Related Experiment Video

Updated: Mar 12, 2026

Analyzing and Building Nucleic Acid Structures with 3DNA

Analyzing and Building Nucleic Acid Structures with 3DNA

Published on: April 26, 2013

Designed 3D DNA Crystals.

Nadrian C Seeman¹, Ruojie Sha², Jens Birktoft²

¹Department of Chemistry, New York University, New York, NY, 10003, USA. ned.seeman@nyu.edu.

Methods in Molecular Biology (Clifton, N.J.)

|November 5, 2016

Summary

This summary is machine-generated.

Designing 3D DNA crystals using self-assembly offers a practical route to creating macroscopic objects. This study introduces 3D DNA crystals based on tensegrity triangles for precise object fabrication.

Keywords:

DNA crystal Self-assembly

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Last Updated: Mar 12, 2026

Analyzing and Building Nucleic Acid Structures with 3DNA

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Published on: April 26, 2013

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Published on: April 12, 2019

Area of Science:

Nanotechnology
Materials Science
Biotechnology

Background:

Self-assembly is a key strategy for fabricating ordered structures.
Designing 3D macroscopic objects requires specific criteria for self-assembly motifs.
Branched DNA motifs with sticky ends show promise for creating 3D periodic systems.

Purpose of the Study:

To introduce a method for designing 3D DNA crystals.
To explore the use of tensegrity triangles in DNA self-assembly.
To present a practical route for fabricating precisely designed 3D macroscopic objects.

Main Methods:

Utilizing well-structured branched DNA motifs.
Employing DNA self-assembly principles.
Designing motifs with dominant affinity interactions and predictable structures.

Main Results:

Demonstration of a route to precisely designed 3D macroscopic objects.
Successful formation of 3D DNA crystals.
Application of tensegrity principles in DNA crystal design.

Conclusions:

Designed 3D DNA crystals offer a viable method for self-assembly.
Tensegrity triangles provide a robust framework for DNA crystal structures.
This approach facilitates the creation of complex, ordered 3D materials.