A coordination polymer for the site-specific integration of semiconducting sequences into DNA-based materials

Lamia L. G. Al-Mahamad, Osama El-Zubir, David G. Smith, Benjamin R. Horrocks and Andrew Houlton ()
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Lamia L. G. Al-Mahamad: Newcastle University
Osama El-Zubir: Newcastle University
David G. Smith: Newcastle University
Benjamin R. Horrocks: Newcastle University
Andrew Houlton: Newcastle University

Nature Communications, 2017, vol. 8, issue 1, 1-7

Abstract: Abstract Advances in bottom-up material design have been significantly progressed through DNA-based approaches. However, the routine integration of semiconducting properties, particularly long-range electrical conduction, into the basic topological motif of DNA remains challenging. Here, we demonstrate this with a coordination polymer derived from 6-thioguanosine (6-TG-H), a sulfur-containing analog of a natural nucleoside. The complexation reaction with Au(I) ions spontaneously assembles luminescent one-dimensional helical chains, characterized as {AuI(μ-6-TG)} n , extending many μm in length that are structurally analogous to natural DNA. Uniquely, for such a material, this gold-thiolate can be transformed into a wire-like conducting form by oxidative doping. We also show that this self-assembly reaction is compatible with a 6-TG-modified DNA duplex and provides a straightforward method by which to integrate semiconducting sequences, site-specifically, into the framework of DNA materials, transforming their properties in a fundamental and technologically useful manner.

Date: 2017
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DOI: 10.1038/s41467-017-00852-6

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