Construction of Three-Dimensional Stick Figures from Branched DNA

Stable DNA branched junction molecules can be used as the building blocks for stick-figures in which the edges are double-helical DNA and the vertices correspond to the branch points of the junctions. Stickyended cohesion is used to direct the association of individual branched complexes. The sequences of these molecules are assigned by a sequence-symmetry minimization procedure. Successful ligation experiments include the oligomerization of individual three-arm and four-arm junctions, the assembly of a quadrilateral from four junctions with different sticky ends, and the recent construction of a molecule with the connectivity of a cube. Possible applications include the assembly of molecular electronic devices, the formation of macromolecular-scale zeolites to host biological complexes for diffraction analysis, and the development of new catalysts.