DNA nanostructure rigidity can be modified through design considerations like crossover spacing and helical lattice arrangement. Typically higher crossover densities correspond to more rigid structures. Flexibility can be programmed into nanostructures by having single-stranded regions that act as flexible hinges1. Within nanostructures, nick sites are also flexible regions and ligating staples together is an existing method for increasing rigidity2.
References
- Lee, J. Y., Kim, M., Lee, C. & Kim, D.-N. Characterizing and Harnessing the Mechanical Properties of Short Single-Stranded DNA in Structured Assemblies. ACS Nano 15, 20430–20441 (2021).
- Rajendran, A., Krishnamurthy, K., Giridasappa, A., Nakata, E. & Morii, T. Stabilization and structural changes of 2D DNA origami by enzymatic ligation. Nucleic Acids Res 49, 7884–7900 (2021).