This award by the Biomaterials program in the Division of Materials Research to Emory University is to develop a novel DNA self-assembly paradigm that will allow scalable construction of large DNA structures that are complex and dynamic. Through evolution, biology showed the power of molecular self-assembly as it is shown in a huge variety of organisms in the planet that exhibit extremely sophisticated forms and functions via self-assembly of biomolecules, such as DNA and proteins. A key challenge in synthetic molecular self-assembly is to construct artificial, controllable systems that imitate intricate structures and complex behaviors seen in biological systems. This project is to harness the power of DNA self-assembly to design and construct scalable, modular, dynamic nanostructures that simulate some of the key aspects of information transfer observed in signaling cascades (e.g. T cell activation signaling cascades initiated by T cell receptor binding), including programmable initiation, propagation, and regulation of information transfer within the artificial DNA nanostructures. The project will provide an enabling platform for self-assembly of dynamic nanomaterials and nanodevices for a variety of important scientific research and applications. The students participating in this project will receive training in cutting-edge biomolecular assembly and nanoscience research. The research program will also be integrated with development of extensive educational outreach activities that are designed to recruit, educate and train the next generation scientists, and to increase the overall scientific literacy of the community, especially the underrepresented minority community in the Atlanta metropolitan area.
Information transfer at the molecular level is an essential phenomenon in chemical and biological processes. This project aims to develop a novel molecular self-assembly paradigm to control long-range information transfer in artificial molecular arrays assembled from modular DNA structural units. The proposed studies on dynamic DNA molecular arrays are scalable, and their transformation can be initiated at selected units, then propagated to neighboring units through prescribed information pathways. Through systematic study of information transfer within 1D, 2D, and 3D dynamic DNA arrays, this project is expected to gain comprehensive understanding on: 1) the thermodynamic and kinetic behaviors of the DNA arrays; 2) the scalability and versatility of the new method; and 3) the programmable initiation, propagation, and regulation of information transfer in the DNA arrays. The new DNA arrays may be used as molecular devices to detect and translate molecular interactions to conformational changes in DNA structures, or to amplify single molecule signals (e.g. using FRET), via information propagation in the DNA arrays. The project would generate novel computational tools, physical models, and new courses that provide interdisciplinary training for postdocs, and graduate and undergraduate students. The outreach program will be tailored to educate and train the next generation scientists and to increase the overall scientific literacy of the community.
