研究実績の概要 |
(1) Remotely controllable DNA nanocapsule for the delivery of protein by photo regulation. A 70 nm × 10 nm × 10 nm 3D DNA capsule was designed and constructed, which containing a small nanospace inside employed for carrying target molecules. The nanostructure has been successfully assembled and confirmed by AFM. Here caspase-3 was chosen as target for delivery, which can induce the apoptosis of cancer cells. The expression of the protein has been successfully carried out and the activity also confirmed.The caspase-3 labeled nanocapsule will be further introduced into the cell system. The photoinduced cleavage of caged nanocapsule has been examined by AFM before and after the labeling. (2) Direct visualization of rotational motions on a single DNA origami A novel nanomechanical device based on DNA origami was developed by empoying DNA photoswitches. A rectangular DNA origami assembled with two double-crossover molecules connected by a rigid linker: a short nucleic acid strand modified with oligophenylene-ethylene, in which one of the DX molecules was located on the surface of DNA tile as a pointer. The nanostructures were constructed and confirmed by AFM. Two pairs of photoresponsive oligonucleotides containing azobenzene molecules were introduced into DX pointer and DNA tile scaffold separately. By switching the photoirradiation with different wavelengths, the DX pointer can be driven to rotate on the DNA tile in a pointer-on-a clock fashion. Moreover, reversible rotational movement of DX pointer on single DNA tile was directly visualized using high-speed AFM.
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