Physics comes to Life: Where nanotechnology and biomedical sciences meet
Nanobiotechnology is a young research field in which nano-sized artificial structures are combined with natural biological systems. One of many possible applications is to use a nanopore for electrically sequencing DNA. To realistically model and study such a setup in the computer, requires the synergy of a broad range of methods. Specifically, molecular dynamics simulations are used to explore the movement of a DNA molecule in the confined aqueous environment of a nanopore channel; density functional theory can help to determine the electronic structure of the nano-bio device; and quantum transport methods allow the calculation of electrical conductance and currents which constitute the output signal to distinguish between the four different bases in DNA.
DNA threaded through graphene nano electrodes in water solution
Gold electrodes docking onto a DNA nucleotide