Self Assembly and Controlled Folding of Emulsion Polymers

传统上，从电子电路到机动车辆，装配线都要遵循非常具体的说明手册，然后是机器人或人。另一方面，在生物学中，生物体根据其基因编码的指令自发地自我组装——遵循物理定律。受生物学的启发，这个项目用特定的DNA相互作用来修饰微观油滴，引导它们自发地组装成复杂的3D结构。这些结构的范围从不寻常的晶体到螺旋，由于它们与光的相互作用而具有令人兴奋的光学性质。这些液滴可以很容易地固化，因此它们提供了一条可编程、不干涉制造的途径，具有所需材料的高产量。该项目旨在从基本层面上解释导致生命的组织原理，这个简单的模型系统将被用作Biobus移动实验室的教育工具，既是实验演示，也是思想实验。技术摘要：本提案的目的是利用生物分子，特别是脂质和DNA链来功能化乳剂，以便自组装任意设计的结构，这些结构可以很容易地固化。这个多功能系统使我们能够控制液滴之间相互作用的流动性、特异性、价性和逻辑编程，从而促进复杂结构的组装，包括乳液聚合物、环路和折叠构型。在这个项目中，我们提出1)使用多种风味的DNA嫁接到乳剂上，在微观尺度上对物质结构进行编程；2)研究路径的折叠动力学，以寻找组织原理；3)使用组装的组件进一步组装成大规模材料。这种“串珠”实验模型类似于分子尺度上的蛋白质折叠，但提供了折叠时链动力学的可视化访问。该项目的一个主要目标是整合实验室内外的科学教育和研究。除了培训参与研究的高中生、本科生和研究生外，PI还参加世界科学节，并且是一个名为生物基地的科学教育设施的创始成员，该设施为所有社会经济背景的学生提供研究级显微镜设备，用于符合标准的学校日间实地考察和夏令营项目。

Non-technical AbstractTraditionally, assembly lines to build machines, from electronic circuits to motor vehicles, follow very specific instruction manuals, followed by robots or people. On the other hand, in biology, organisms self-assemble spontaneously according to the instructions encoded in their genes - following the laws of physics. Inspired by biology, this project embellishes microscopic oil droplets with specific DNA interactions that guide their spontaneous assembly into complex, 3D architectures. These structures range from unusual crystals to helices with exciting optical properties due to their interaction with light. These droplets can readily be solidified, therefore they offer a route to programmable, hands-off manufacturing, with high yield of the desired material. The project aims to explain on a fundamental level the principles of organization that led to life, and this simple model system will be used as an educational tool on the mobile labs of the Biobus, both as an experimental demonstration and as a thought experiment.Technical AbstractThe objective of this proposal is to use biological molecules, particularly lipids and DNA strands, to functionalize emulsions in order to self-assemble arbitrarily designed structures, which can readily be solidified. This versatile system allows us to control the fluidity, specificity, valency, and logical programming of interactions between droplets, which in turn facilitates the assembly of complex structures, including emulsion polymers, loops and folded configurations. In this project, we propose 1) to use multiple flavors of DNA grafted on emulsions to program the structure of matter on the micro-scale, 2) to study the folding dynamics of the pathways in search of organizing principles and 3) to use the assembled components for further assembly into large-scale materials. This 'beads-on-a-string' experimental model is analogous to protein folding on the molecular scale, but provides visual access to the chain dynamics as it folds. A major goal of this project is to integrate science education and research within the laboratory and beyond. Apart from training high-school, undergraduate, and graduate students that participate in the research, the PI participates in the World Science Festival and is a founding member of a science education facility called the Biobase, which provides school students from all socioeconomic backgrounds with a research grade microscopy facility for standards-aligned school day field trips and summer camp programs.