CAMBRIDGE, Mass. - Scientists have developed a powerful way of mining the chemical universe for new reactions by piggybacking collections of different small organic molecules onto short strands of DNA, which then gives the reactants the opportunity to react by zipping together. Their work draws upon an innovative technique, known as "DNA-templated synthesis," that uses DNA to code not for RNA or proteins but instead for synthetic molecules.

The researchers, led by Harvard University chemist David R. Liu, report this week in the journal Nature that their system for reaction discovery, driven by DNA-templated synthesis, is so efficient that a single researcher can evaluate thousands of potential chemical reactions in a two-day experiment.

"A conventional approach to reaction discovery, in which different reaction conditions are examined for their ability to transform one type of substrates into one type of product, may well be the best approach for trying to achieve a specific transformation," says Liu, an associate professor of chemistry and chemical biology in Harvard's Faculty of Arts and Sciences. "But no one knows what fraction of 'reactivity space' has been mined thus far, or even what this space looks like. We were therefore intrigued by a different approach to reaction discovery that does not focus on any specific combination of substrates but instead can simultaneously examine many combinations."

DNA-templated synthesis, pioneered in Liu's group, taps the unique assembly power of nucleic acids to address fundamental challenges in chemistry. Organic molecules are attached to, and "encoded" by, single strands of approximately a dozen DNA bases; when two strands with complementary sequences spontaneously stick together, their associated organic molecules can undergo a chemical reaction to generate a product.

Because the resulting synthetic compounds are linked to DNA, techniques long used to screen and amplify the genetic mainstay
'"/>

Contact: Steve Bradt
steve_bradt@harvard.edu
617-496-8070
Harvard University
29-Sep-2004

Page: 1 2 3
Related biology news :

1. NIST genetics research lends a hand in World Trade Center IDs
2. Conference at UH opens doors for new scientists, engineers
3. Wisconsin scientists develop quick botox test
4. UCI scientists successfully target key HIV protein; breakthrough may lead to new drug therapies
5. Alaska scientists find Arctic tundra yields surprising carbon loss
6. UAF scientists discover new marine habitat in Alaska
7. Information system to help scientists analyze mechanisms of social behavior
8. Zoonotic diseases - European scientists unite to fight diseases
9. Israeli scientists reveal the plan of a key cellular machine
10. Study by Israeli scientists provides insight on DNA code
11. Computer scientists at UH developing nurturing computers