DNA-gated stimuli-responsive nanostructures for metal sensing and smart remediation

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Around 40% of the rivers and lakes in America are polluted, and this problem is much more serious in developing countries. In particular, water contamination by heavy metals is a growing problem with serious adverse health effects. Therefore, detection and remediation of heavy metals is a major task for analytical chemists and environmental engineers. We propose herein a biomimetic device for solving this problem. The device releases sensing or remediation chemicals only in the presence of target contaminants, while it can stably flow in water for a long time in a benign polymer capsule in the absence the target. Our approach will change the sampling-testing-remediation method to the new seeking-responding-remediation (SRR). To achieve this goal, we propose to use DNAzyme-gated polymersomes for searching contaminants and remediation. Compared to dumping chemicals into water for remediation, our approach is more targeted with a higher efficiency. This project will be performed with our collaborator in the University of Bordeaux in France through NSERC's international collaboration program. Two local Canadian companies will also be involved to guide the project to make practical impacts.