Genetic material as drivers: For the first time, scientists are turning DNA molecules into electric motors at the nanoscale. To do this, they assembled several DNA strands in such a way that they formed a base with rotating arms. If a voltage is applied now, the DNA rotor begins to spin and spin in one direction, the researchers report in the journal Nature. New nanoelectric actuators open up the possibility of driving nanoprocesses and chemical reactions in new ways.

Machines have kept humanity moving for centuries. Their main function is to convert various forms of energy into motion – even on the smallest scales. There now these nanomotors are only a nanometer in size and they have become the DNA constructs of genetic molecules. However, the latter has so far only been able to generate motion from chemical energy – not electrical energy.

A team led by first author Anna Katharina Böhm from the Technical University of Munich has created an efficient nanoscale electric motor made from DNA. To assemble the molecular motor, scientists use what is known as DNA origami. With this construction method, several long single strands of genetic material serve as the main structure, to which complementary parts of the DNA are attached. The molecular sequence is selected in such a way as to produce the desired binding and folding structure.

“We have been working this way for many years and are now able to develop very precise and complex organisms such as molecular switches and hollow bodies that can capture viruses. Senior author Hendrik Dietz from the Technical University of Munich explains: “If you put the DNA strands together in the right order in a solution, things automatically come together”.

The researchers used the origami technique to create a new three-component DNA machine. It is based on a base about 40 nanometers high, which is mounted on a glass plate with the help of polyethylene glycol. A 13 nm-thick DNA platform was then attached to the leg, and the base was attached with a 500 nm rotating arm made of DNA. The composition of the intermediate elements is responsible for the functioning of the motor.

Basically, the DNA machine acts as a kind of ratchet. The resistance in the idler limits the rotation of the swivel arm. Without a fixed power source, the moving parts move randomly and uncontrollably, affected only by collisions with solvent molecules. However, once an AC voltage is applied across the two electrodes, the arm rotates in a targeted and continuous manner in the desired direction. Finally, scientists can influence the speed and direction of rotation through the direction of the field and the frequency and amplitude of the voltage.

“This new engine has unmatched mechanical capabilities,” said co-author Ramin Golestanian from the Max Planck Institute for Dynamics and Self-Organization in Göttingen. “It can reach torque on the order of 10 pN. It can produce more energy per second than the energy released by splitting two ATP molecules.

Scientists hope that the machine they are developing will do some technical work in the future, such as converting electrical energy into chemical energy. We can use it to drive chemical reactions along the ATP production pathway. For example, with such an actuator the surface can be tightly coated,” Dietz explains. “Then you add the raw material, apply a little AC power, and the actuator produces the desired chemical compound.” ( Nature, 2022; doi:10.1038/s41586-022-04910-y)

Source: Technical University of Munich

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