“We are introducing a brand-new, lifelike material concept powered by its very own artificial metabolism. We are not making something that’s alive, but we are creating materials that are much more lifelike than have ever been seen before.”Dan Luo
For the first time, researchers at Cornell University have developed a dynamic material from DNA that possesses ‘lifelike’ properties, particularly that of metabolism, in a breakthrough that could lead to the introduction of evolution to future materials. The group, which has been exploring the use of DNA as both a genetic and a generic material for many years, have shown how the molecule could be used to develop simple machines made from biomaterials with the characteristics of living things, with all the processes involved being self-contained with no external interference, while the use of DNA means the whole system could be self-evolutionary.
As reported in Science Robotics [Hamada et al Sci. Robot. (2019) DOI: 10.1126/scirobotics.aaw3512], these materials, using DASH for DNA-based assembly and synthesis of hierarchical, have the capabilities of metabolism, as well as self-assembly and organization. As group leader Dan Luo said, “We are introducing a brand-new, lifelike material concept powered by its very own artificial metabolism. We are not making something that’s alive, but we are creating materials that are much more lifelike than have ever been seen before.”
With the assistance of DASH, they developed a biomaterial able to autonomously emerge from its nanoscale building blocks and arrange itself into polymers and then mesoscale shapes. In such a system, DNA molecules are synthesized and assembled hierarchically, to help produce a dynamic, autonomous process of growth and decay, as biosynthesis and biodegradation are integral to self-sustainability and depend on metabolism to maintain form and function.
From a 55-nucleotide base seed sequence, the molecules were multiplied to produce chains of repeating DNA, before the reaction solution was injected in a microfluidic device to offer a liquid flow of energy and the building blocks for biosynthesis. When the flow washed over the material, the DNA synthesized its own new strands. The front of the material showed growth while the tail degraded in optimized balance, so it produced its own locomotion and inch forward against the flow.
The key breakthrough was with the programmed metabolism embedded into DNA materials, as the DNA contains the set of instructions for metabolism and autonomous regeneration. The material last for up to two cycles of synthesis and degradation before expiring, although the team believe longevity could be extended, potentially bringing more “generations” of the material as it self-replicates.
Such a system could find applications as a biosensor to detect the presence of any DNA and RNA, as well as developing a dynamic template for making proteins without living cells. The group are now looking at ways the material could recognize stimuli and have autonomous active responses from both a material and biorobotics perspective.
Lifelike biomaterials that can produce their own locomotion