Template-Directed Nucleation and Growth of Inorganic Nanoparticles on DNA Scaffolds

摘要

Structural DNA nanotechnology provides a robust method for building nanoscale molecules that self-assemble into structures that resemble their original design. Since inception, this technology has produced numerous two- and three-dimensional objects, including planar arrays, cylindrical tubes, and various geometric shapes. The ability of this method to create programmable surfaces with addressable features provides a unique opportunity to design synthetic scaffolds that control the spatial orientation of individual molecules in precise nanoscale dimensions. One of the more exciting applications that this technology can permit is the design of inorganic nanostructurcs that assemble multiple inorganic components on a single surface. While thiol-modified oligonucleotides have been used extensively to assemble preformed gold nanoparticles (NPs) on DNA nanostruc-tures, more general strategies are now needed to expand the versatility of the DNA scaffold to other types of inorganic NPs.