New nanobot can efficiently walk unaided along a single strand of DNA
University of Oxford scientists have created a two-legged, nano-scale robot that can walk unaided along a single strand of DNA more efficiently than all previously created nanobots.The researchers claim that unlike earlier attempts, their nanobot does not wander aimlessly back and forth, fall off its track or destroy its track as it walks.They even claim to have devised an ingenious way of powering the nanobot that allows it to move freely.The team have revealed that their nanobot comprises two connected feet, each made of a short sequence of DNA bases that attach to a complementary sequence on the DNA track. According to the researcher, the mini robot has been so designed that as one foot steps down, the other is forced to lift off.They say that the power for this process is supplied by molecules floating nearby, which react together to release energy as long as a specific catalyst is there.Another reason to call this a clever design is the fat that the he DNA feet themselves act as t...