A Research on DNA Nanotube Controlled to Open and Close by Ultrasound

Nanotubes are nanostructures that can be used to control the transport of substances across membranes. In particular, nanotubes composed of DNA can be designed with predictable and tunable structures based on the specificity of base pairing, and these DNA nanotubes can even feature lids to serve as "valves" for drug delivery and other applications. Methods already developed to control the opening and closing of DNA nanotube lids include systems with sensitivity to specific DNA strands, heat, and light. We propose ultrasound (US) as a new method of achieving such control and aim to develop DNA nanotubes sensitive to ultrasound (US-DNA nanotubes). In this work, we prepared the main body of the proposed US-DNA nanotubes and characterized the obtained system by electrophoresis and a proton transport assay.