DNA and RNA have emerged as a material for nanotechnology applications that capitalize on the nucleic acids’ ability to encode folding and programmable self-assembly through mainly base pairing. While DNA and RNA offer distinct advantages as components of nano-architectures, the two types of nucleic acids have rarely been used in combination to enhance structural diversity or for partitioning of functional and architectural roles.

We have used a combined design and screening strategy to discover combinations of RNA motifs as architectural joints and DNA building blocks as functional modules that allow the self-assembly of a versatile toolkit of nucleic acid nanoshapes. The design and screening approach enables the systematic development of hybrid RNA/DNA nanoshapes as robust programmable platforms for applications in molecular recognition, sensor and catalyst development as well as protein interaction studies.