Structural DNA nanotechnology is an emerging field with exciting potential for applications such as single molecule sensing, drug delivery, and manipulating molecular components. Realizing the functional potential of DNA nanomachines and nanorobots requires the ability to design dynamic mechanical behavior such as complex motion, conformational dynamics, and force generation. Our lab has developed approaches to design and construct DNA nanostructures with programmable 1D, 2D, and 3D motion as well as dynamic nanostructures with programmed, responsive, or externally controlled conformational dynamics. While these DNA nanorobotic platforms have a range of applications, challenges with the design process remain a major hurdle to broader implementation.

Currently, design of DNA devices is carried out through a bottom up process that requires manually routing the underlying DNA architecture, which relies on prior expertise. I will present a new design approach with an accompanying software tool we developed that leverages a hybrid top-down geometric modeling approach with bottom-up fine tuning of component level designs. This approach simplifies the design process and reduces design times from hours to minutes.

Furthermore, our software tool enables a significant advance in 3D design complexity, especially for multi-component dynamic devices. Moving forward, we aim to develop devices where nanoscale mechanical and dynamic properties can be exploited to probe physical properties or molecular interactions in real time. I will highlight ongoing work in our lab developing DNA nanodevices to probe the structure and dynamics of biomolecular complexes with an initial focus on studying nucleosomes, which are the fundamental packing unit of DNA in chromosomes.

Professor Castro received his Bachelor’s and Master’s degrees in Mechanical Engineering both in 2005 from The Ohio State University and his PhD in Mechanical Engineering from the Massachusetts Institute of Technology in 2009. He was then a post-doctoral fellow at the Technische Universität München working in the field of structural DNA nanotechnology.

Dr. Castro joined OSU in 2011 as a faculty member and is currently an Associate Professor in the Department of Mechanical and Aerospace Engineering and a faculty member of the OSU Biophysics Graduate Program. His research focuses on the self-assembly of DNA nanodevices to probe biophysical function of molecular and cellular systems.

Dr. Castro’s laboratory has pioneered the use of engineering mechanics and design approaches for the development of DNA nanomachines with complex motion and dynamic behavior. A major goal of his current research is to develop nanodevices for measurement, manipulation, and drug delivery in biological and medical applications. He has received honors including OSU research and teaching awards, an NSF CAREER award, an Alexander von Humboldt fellowship, and a Fulbright Research Scholar Award.