[Zurück]

C. Jochum, N. Adzić, G. Kahl, C. N. Likos:
"An investigation of dendrimer-like DNA: theory and experiment";
Vortrag: 33rd Conference of The European Colloid and Interface (ECIS) 2019, Leuven; 08.09.2019 - 13.09.2019; in: "33rd Conference of The European Colloid and Interface Society: BOOK OF ABSTRACTS", (2019), S. 16.

An investigation of dendrimer-like DNA: theory and experiment
Clemens Jochum 1 , Natasa Adzić 2 , Emmanuel Stiakakis 3 , Gerhard Kahl 1 , Christos N. Likos 2
1
Institute for Theoretical Physics, TU Wien, Wiedner Hauptstrasse 8-10, 1040 Vienna, Austria
2
Faculty of Physics, University of Vienna, Boltzmanngasse 5, A-1090 Vienna, Austria
3
ICS-3, Forschungszentrum Jülich, Leo-Brandt-Straße, D-52425 Jülich, Germany
Dendrimers are synthetic macromolecules, characterized by a highly branched and regular
internal architecture. Recently, dendrimer-like DNAs (DL-DNAs) were synthesized via
enzymatic ligation of Y-shaped DNA building blocks. These charged dendrimers represent a
novel macro-molecular aggregate, which holds high promise in bringing about targeted self-
assembly of soft-matter systems in the bulk and at interfaces.
We present a joint simulational-experimental study of these novel macromolecules. Based on a
bead-spring model for the DL-DNAs (of varying generation numbers) we perform large-scale
simulations to determine the equilibrium properties and the conformational characteristics of
these macromolecules. The obtained results are compared to light scattering experiments [1] .
The simulation data provide a broad variety of additional information about the internal
molecular structure of DL-DNAs by varying the generation number and the salinity of the
solvent. In an effort to simulate concentrated solutions of DL-DNAs, we extract an effective,
coarse-grained potential, based on Widom´s particle-insertion method. With this potential at
hand, we investigate the bulk behaviour of DL-DNAs. These findings are essential to
investigate if these dendrimer systems are viable candidates for the experimental realization of
cluster crystals with multiple site occupancy in the bulk [2] .
Figure 1: simulation snapshots of G1, G3, and G6 DL-DNA (from left to right). Different generations of
the dendrimers are indicated by different shades of blue, while counter-ions are colored red.
The study of these charged dendrimer systems represents a relevant field of research in the
area of soft matter due to their potential role for various interdisciplinary applications, ranging
from molecular cages for drug delivery to the development of dendrimer- and dendron-based
ultra-thin films in the area of nanotechnology [3] .
Acknowledgements: Supported by FWF (I 2866-N36) and DFG (STI 664/3-1).
References
[1] C. Jochum et al, Nanoscale, 11 2019, 1604-1617.
[2] B. Mladek, D. Gottwald, M. Neumann, G. Kahl, C. N. Likos, Phys. Rev. Lett., 96 2006, 045701.
[3] C. Lee, J. MacKay, J. Fréchet, F. Szoka, Nat. Biotechnol., 23 2005, 1517-1526.

DNA Dendrimer Simulation

https://publik.tuwien.ac.at/files/publik_281211.pdf

Projektleitung Gerhard Kahl:
DFS