Tracking a Molecular Motor with a Nanoscale Optical Encoder

• Published in: Nano letters Vol. 10; no. 3; pp. 1022 - 1027
• Main Authors: Wickersham, Charles E, Cash, Kevin J, Pfeil, Shawn H, Bruck, Irina, Kaplan, Daniel L, Plaxco, Kevin W, Lipman, Everett A
• Format: Journal Article
• Language: English
• Published: Washington, DC American Chemical Society 10-03-2010
• Subjects: Condensed matter: structure, mechanical and thermal properties; Crystallization - methods; DNA - chemistry; DNA - ultrastructure; Equipment Design; Equipment Failure Analysis; Exact sciences and technology; Low-dimensional structures (superlattices, quantum well structures, multilayers): structure, and nonelectronic properties; Nanostructures - chemistry; Nanostructures - ultrastructure; Nanotechnology - instrumentation; Optical Devices; Particle Size; Physics; Surfaces and interfaces; thin films and whiskers (structure and nonelectronic properties); Transducers; FRET; single-molecule; Molecular motor; Nanometer scale; Tracking; Organic dye; DNA; Resonance energy; Nanostructures; Energy transfer
• ISSN: 1530-6984; 1530-6992
• DOI: 10.1021/nl904192m

Optical encoders are commonly used in macroscopic machines to make precise measurements of distance and velocity by translating motion into a periodic signal. Here we show how Förster resonance energy transfer can be used to implement this technique at the single-molecule scale. We incorporate a series of acceptor dye molecules into self-assembling DNA, and the periodic signal resulting from unhindered motion of a donor-labeled molecular motor provides nanometer-scale resolution in milliseconds.