Branched Oligonucleotide Hybrids

One of the non-biological applications for DNA is nanostructuring. Because oligo- and polynucleotides engage in predictable base pairing interactions, designed three-dimensional structures can be generated, based on the hybridization and folding of such strands. A wide array of structures on the scale of nanometers have been created using unmodified DNA. For applications in material sciences, branched oligonucleotides are being synthesized that consist of an organic molecule as branching element and oligonucleotides appended to it through covalent bonds. Because these synthetic species are constructed from two different classes of compounds, they are called 'hybrids'.

References

DNA nanostructuring

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Branched oligonucleotide hybrids

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