The Role of Defects on the Assembly and Stability of DNA Nanostructures

Defects are known to underlie the mechanical properties of materials, especially so at the nanoscale. Using four compositionally identical DNA triangles, defect density is found to be inversely correlated with assembly efficiency and melting temperature. These findings are supported by a series of experiments with more complex DNA pyramids. Because they are naturally responsive to stresses, defects present an attractive opportunity as design elements for responsive DNA materials. Detailed facts of importance to specialist readers are published as ”Supporting Information”. Such documents are peer-reviewed, but not copy-edited or typeset. They are made available as submitted by the authors. Please note: The publisher is not responsible for the content or functionality of any supporting information supplied by the authors. Any queries (other than missing content) should be directed to the corresponding author for the article.