Nonequilibrium Self-Assembly of Microtubules Through Stepwise Sequential Interactions of DNA

The assembly of biological systems forms nonequilibrium patterns with different functionalities through molecular-level communication via stepwise sequential interaction and activation. The mimicking of this molecular signaling offers extensive opportunities to design self-assemblies of bioinspired synthetic nonequilibrium systems to develop molecular robots with active, adaptive, and autonomous behavior. Herein, the design and construction of biomolecular motor system, microtubule (MT)-kinesin based molecular swarm system, are reported through stepwise sequential interactions of DNA. DNA signals are exchanged between three different DNA-tethered MTs, whereby the DNA signal from the first MT can activate the DNA strand on the second MT by communicating through physical contact, which facilitates assembly formation between the second and third DNA-tethered MTs. The DNA strands on the MTs can recognize the specific sequences of other DNA strands in the system and communicate with the complementary DNA on other MTs. This work will pave the way for developing autonomous molecular machines with advanced functionalities for complex nanotechnological applications.