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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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Updated: Jun 9, 2026

Synthesis and Characterization of Supramolecular Colloids

Synthesis and Characterization of Supramolecular Colloids

Published on: April 22, 2016

A DNA-encoded recipe to direct multistage colloidal assembly.

Pepijn G Moerman^1,2, Cheng-Hung Chou¹, Thomas E Videbæk³

¹Department of Chemical and Biomolecular Engineering, Johns Hopkins University, Baltimore, MD 21218.

Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences of the United States of America

|March 19, 2026

Summary

Scientists engineered complex structures using DNA-encoded reactions to control self-assembly kinetics. This kinetic control allows diverse structures with tunable features, moving beyond equilibrium limitations.

Keywords:

DNA-coated colloids assembly kinetics nonequilibrium

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Area of Science:

Biomolecular Engineering
Materials Science
Chemical Physics

Background:

Equilibrium self-assembly yields ordered, periodic structures limited by free energy minima.
Non-equilibrium processes offer pathways to kinetically stabilized states with complex structures.
Targeting specific kinetically stabilized states remains a challenge.

Purpose of the Study:

To explore the design space of non-equilibrium self-assembly for complex structure formation.
To demonstrate the use of DNA-encoded reactions for programming assembly pathways.
To achieve kinetic control over self-assembly for tunable structures.

Main Methods:

Utilized a DNA-encoded recipe with multiple biomolecular reactions.
Independently controlled time-dependent binding strength and specificity of subunits.
Engineered assembly pathways leading to kinetically trapped final states.

Main Results:

Demonstrated that the same building blocks can form diverse structures via kinetic control.
Created structures with tunable core-shell compositions and feature sizes larger than building blocks.
Showcased the governance of structure by DNA-encoded assembly kinetics.

Conclusions:

DNA-encoded kinetic control unlocks access to complex, multi-length scale structures.
Independent regulation of reaction timing enables precise control over assembly pathways.
This approach holds potential for morphogenesis-like engineered assembly processes.