Dr. Devleena Samanta, a faculty affiliate of Texas Materials Institute, and a small team from her lab, have recently published a new article introducing the use of single-moledule DNA tweezers (SMDTs) to control enzymes and turn them on and off. Dr. Shivudu Godhulayyagari, a postdoctoral fellow, and Sara Nixon, a graduate student in chemistry, developed this new way to control enzymes without needing to change the enzyme itself.
These "tweezers" are made from DNA and act like tiny switches that attach to the enyzme and "pinch" it to turn it off. When the tweezers detect a specific molecular signal, they change shape and let go, turning the enzyme back on.
This tool can be finely tuned to different enzymes, allowing the SMDTs to discriminate between closely related molecules. They can also be customized to respond to many different signals, such as nucleic acids, proteins, small molecules, or metal ions. This breakthrough could help scientists design smarter, more responsive systems for medicine, research, and biotechnology.
Read more of their article, "Single-Molecule DNA Tweezers Enable Programmable Control of Enzyme Activity via Arbitrary Molecular Cues," at Angewandte Chemie International Edition.
