Thursday, 21 July 2022

DNA to serve as a switch in a biological computer

 

Image courtesy of Shutterstock/ktsdesign.

Joel Kontinen 


New Scientist tells us how DNA can be used as a switch in a biological  computer.

“A nanoscale rotor made from DNA could be used as a tiny valve for tasks like sorting molecules or act as a switch in a biological computer.

Designing moving mechanical systems at nanoscale is difficult because of the random movements of small molecules, which knocks components back and forth. There are many examples of effective biological motors in nature, such as F-ATPase, an energy-producing enzyme with a central rotating column, but functioning synthetic nanomotors had yet to be built.”


Source; 

Wilkins, Alex, 2022, Spinning rotors made from DNA could power minuscule machines New Scientist  20 July,