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From the Deep

Nanotechnologists build designs of silica inspired by the shapes of microorganisms called diatoms

04 August 2018

From the Deep

In oceans, lakes and rivers all over the world, microorganisms called diatoms are sculpting strangely shaped shells – pyramids, stars, bowl-like curves, all built slowly from layer upon layer of silica. Inspired by these creative microbes, nanotechnologists are creating their own sturdy silica designs (shown on the top row) with thousands of uses. First they use DNA origami to produce a sort of scaffolding out of a mesh of DNA strands. Next, clumps of silica are pulled towards the DNA by their electrical charge. Layered up like an artificial diatom shell, the finished biomimetic structures (pictured here with two different types of high-powered microscope) are much stronger than DNA scaffolding alone. They could be just the thing to deliver drugs inside the human body, all while withstanding the sloshing currents in our veins and tissues – much like the diatoms bobbing in the ocean waves.

Written by John Ankers

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BPoD stands for Biomedical Picture of the Day. Managed by the MRC Laboratory of Medical Sciences until Jul 2023, it is now run independently by a dedicated team of scientists and writers. The website aims to engage everyone, young and old, in the wonders of biology, and its influence on medicine. The ever-growing archive of more than 4000 research images documents over a decade of progress. Explore the collection and see what you discover. Images are kindly provided for inclusion on this website through the generosity of scientists across the globe.

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