DNA has become an extraordinary tool for creating sophisticated custom architectures at the nanoscale. The exceptional self-assembly capabilities of nucleic acids, through the formation of precise Watson-Crick hydrogen bonds between complementary A-T and G-C base pairs, make the correct assembly of these structures possible. Scientists exploit this feature to program the sequence of different single-stranded DNA molecules to assemble them into highly organized structures, much like a molecular LEGO. But DNA molecules lack properties of interest for industrial applications, such as conduction, photoluminescence or magnetism and therefore the application of these DNA nanoassemblies is limited. The implementation of new functionalities in nucleic acids requires the introduction of entities that provide them, and transition metal ions are good candidates for this task.<br/>Our group has developed a strategy to create metallo-DNA assemblies where metal ions run through the centre of the double helix. This methodology does not alter the native ability of DNA to self-assemble using Watson-Crick canonical base pairs. Therefore, in principle, any DNA-based architecture could be transformed into its metal-modified DNA equivalent. Thus, the door is opened to preparing personalized metallo-DNA systems of higher hierarchy with unprecedented control. Furthermore, our group also employs self-assembly reactions between single-stranded DNA and custom metal complexes to obtain custom metal DNA systems. With this strategy, we can develop metal-DNA arrays containing different metal complexes along a section since the DNA sequence controls the number and position of these metal complexes. The final arrangement will then depend on the choice of nucleobase sequence and the metal complexes used. Therefore, different design options can adjust the properties of these systems.

Metallo-DNA assemblies with programmable shapes using metal-modified Watson-Crick base pairs

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