A multiple-encrypted DNA device for secure communication

DNA cryptography has been explored for data encryption because of the high storage capacity of DNA molecules, the considerable parallelism of DNA computing, and the diversity of DNA nanostructures. Nevertheless, integrating multiple encryption protocols in a single DNA origami communication workflow remains challenging. Here, we develop a DNA multilayer encryption device that integrates multiple cryptographic algorithms for secure communication. The encoding system exploits the addressability of rectangular DNA nanostructures to create spatial patterns into nano-Morse code. In a codebook-based symmetric encryption framework, ciphertext messages encoded by nano-Morse code patterns are transmitted through shared key. Furthermore, the transformation between the rectangular and tubular DNA nanostructures allows the steganography and conformation-gated verification with a key space of 2⁵⁷⁶. We demonstrate multilayer secure communication in block-based message normalization mode by transmitting the message "JUNE6 INVASION NORMANDY," achieving confidentiality, integrity, and authenticity. This work advances DNA nanotechnology from a structural scaffold to a programmable information-processing platform with implications for intelligent molecular systems.