Toward a minimal DNA origami for seeding tiled DNA nanotube bundles and patterning silos

Using DNA origami, a self-assembly method for building arbitrary and highly addressable structures out of DNA, we designed what we believe to be the shortest possible seed for nucleating tiled DNA nanotubes from either end; 75% the size of the smallest seed described in the literature. It consistently forms with high yield (70%) and nucleates nanotubes from both ends equally well. This seed’s small size makes it less costly to produce and easier to incorporate into hierarchical assemblies. Here we explore strategies for building seed clusters of well-defined size and shape (triangular and square) and seed rafts (with extended hexagonal or square lattice structure) for nucleating nanotube bundles.