Team:TecCEM

Abstract

DNAorigami is a technique that allows the self-assembly of strands of DNA to engineer a complex shape, in this sense, the array of the base pairs within these strands changes their 3D conformation. Scientists have managed to create different designs and have proposed several applications for this tool. However, all the programmable strands are synthesized by chemical reactions in laboratories. By inserting these stands into a plasmid, transforming a competent bacteria and incubating it with the helper phage, we propose a biological self-replicative and self-assembling way to produce a custom-shaped DNAbot. This molecule has specific recognition sites for lead ions which when in contact, form a quadruplex structure able to capture the cations. Our work intends to give a new and successful methodology to produce this functional DNA structures and promote the use of DNA itself as a nanotechnology material