Self-Assembly of Hybrid Peptide-DNA Nanostructures using Homotrimeric Coiled-Coil/Nucleic Acid Building Blocks

Area of Science:

• Nanotechnology
• Biomaterials Science
• Molecular Biology

Background:

• Peptides and DNA are primary self-assembling biological molecules for nanomaterial construction.
• Combining peptide and DNA self-assembly motifs in nanostructures remains challenging.
• Few examples exist that integrate both motifs as key structural elements.

Purpose of the Study:

• To synthesize a novel peptide-DNA conjugate.
• To investigate its self-assembly into a stable homotrimer using a coiled-coil motif.
• To utilize the hybrid trimer as a building block for DNA nanostructures.

Main Methods:

• Synthesis of a peptide-DNA conjugate.
• Characterization of self-assembly into a homotrimer.
• Construction and atomic force microscopy (AFM) analysis of hybrid nanostructures.
• Comparison with a non-assembling peptide control.

Main Results:

• Successful synthesis of a peptide-DNA conjugate that forms a stable homotrimer.
• Demonstration of the hybrid trimer as a three-way junction for linking DNA tiles and closing wireframe structures.
• AFM confirmed the formation of novel hybrid nanostructures.

Conclusions:

• The hybrid peptide-DNA trimer is a versatile component for DNA nanostructures.
• This approach enables the integration of peptide motifs and potential bio-functionality into DNA nanostructures.
• Opens avenues for novel nanomaterials combining advantages of both peptides and DNA.