ABSTRACT
Anisometric DNA nanoparticles with precisely tailored size and shape are prepared by three-dimensional folding of DNA – DNA origami – marked with a fluorescent intercalating dye (YOYO-1), stabilised with silica, and dispersed in a lyotropic chromonic liquid crystal (an aqueous solution of disodium cromoglycate). Observations by total internal reflection fluorescence microscopy indicate that the luminescent nanoparticles are stable in the liquid crystal dispersion and accumulate at the positions of point defects in the liquid crystal director field. The observations indicate that silica-stabilisation of the nanoparticles prevents the dye from leaking into the liquid crystal host and that the luminescent particles assemble at disclinations.
Acknowledgments
B. Z. would like to thank the President of Paderborn University for a scholarship for postdoctoral young scientists. Financial support by the Deutsche Forschungsgemeinschaft [DFG: LO 1922/4-1 (H. K.)] is gratefully acknowledged. K. M., L. N. and T. L. acknowledge funding from the ERC consolidator grant “DNA Funs” (Project ID: 818635).
Disclosure statement
No potential conflict of interest was reported by the author(s).
Supplementary data
Supplemental data for this article can be accessed online at https://doi.org/10.1080/02678292.2023.2188494