Graphene Ferries DNA

Add DNA delivery to the long list of appli­cations for the versatile carbon material graphene. A team led by Huang-Hao Yang of Fuzhou University, in China, has delivered short stretches of DNA into cells with the help of tiny sheets of nanoscale graph­ene oxide (Chem. Comm., DOI: 10.1039/b926893f). Relatively few nanomaterials have been explored for delivering DNA to cells, an area dominated by cationic polymers and lipids. Yang and coworkers employed graphene to transport a molecular beacon: a loop of DNA with a fluorescent dye and a quencher on opposite ends. In its quenched loop shape, the beacon interacts with the graphene and has low fluorescence. Once inside cells, the beacon intertwines with its complementary DNA target, releasing it from its graphene ferry and restoring its reddish glow. The graphene also protects its nucleotide cargo from destruction by DNA-cleaving enzymes. Preliminary tests suggest that the graphene isn’t toxic to the cells. Next, the team plans to deliver potentially therapeutic nucleotides such as siRNA to cells.