By putting effector-activated nucleic acid catalysts (aptazymes) on nanoscale mechanical and electronic devices, is allowing for a new paradigm for the integration of the biological world with electronic instrumentation. The aptazymes can sense a wide variety of analytes, such as metabolites, proteins, and even cell surfaces, and transduce the information directly to the mechanical or (ultimately) electronic devices. This most basic circuit for the transmogrification of biological and chemical information into electronic information should enable the construction of extremely novel devices not only for sensing, but also for actuation. Ultimately, these types of experiments will lead to a better integration of organismal physiology with instrumentation.
