Biomimetic Molecular Signaling using DNA Walkers on Microparticles

We report the release of catalytic DNA walkers from hydrogel microparticles and the detection of those walkers by substrate-coated microparticles. This might be considered a synthetic biology analog of molecular signal release and reception. One type of particles was coated with components of a DNA one-step strand displacement (OSD) reaction to release the walker. A second type of particle was coated with substrate (or “track”) for the molecular walker. We distinguish these particle types using fluorescence barcoding: we synthesized and distinguished multiple particle types with multicolor fluorescence microscopy and automated image analysis software. This represents a step toward amplified, multiplex, and microscopically localized detection based on DNA nanotechnology.