New technique speeds up DNA manipulation process

Nature : Biotechnologists have wanted to use DNA in nanoscale machines, but manipulating the molecules has been a difficult and time-consuming task. Folding DNA into shapes typically involves using short strands of DNA like sticky tape to hold a folded longer strand in place and then heating and cooling the construction so it will settle into shape. The heating and cooling process took up to a week each time. An examination of what happens in that process has resulted in a new development that allows DNA to be shaped in just minutes. Hendrik Dietz of the Technical University of Munich and his colleagues painted DNA with fluorescent dye and then watched as the molecules cooled. They found that all of the folding activity occurred within a very narrow temperature range. The team then tried creating the same objects by heating the molecules to that specific range of temperature and discovered that the same results could be achieved in just minutes. Dietz now wants to develop computer models about how DNA folds and interacts with other molecules. And he hopes to design structures that fold at around 37 °C so they can be used in biological settings.