Control and reversal of the electrophoretic force on DNA in a charged nanopore

Binquan Luan, Aleksei Aksimentiev

Research output: Contribution to journalArticlepeer-review

Abstract

Electric field driven transport of DNA through solid-state nanopores is the key process in nanopore-based DNA sequencing that promises dramatic reduction of genome sequencing costs. A major hurdle in the development of this sequencing method is that DNA transport through the nanopores occurs too quickly for the DNA sequence to be detected. By means of all-atom molecular dynamics simulations, we demonstrate that the velocity of DNA transport through a nanopore can be controlled by the charge state of the nanopore surface. In particular, we show that the charge density of the nanopore surface controls the magnitude and/or direction of the electro-osmotic flow through the nanopore and thereby can significantly reduce or even reverse the effective electrophoretic force on DNA. Our work suggests a physical mechanism to control DNA transport in a nanopore by chemical, electrical or electrochemical modification of the nanopore surface.

Original languageEnglish (US)
Article number454123
JournalJournal of Physics Condensed Matter
Volume22
Issue number45
DOIs
StatePublished - Nov 17 2010

ASJC Scopus subject areas

  • Materials Science(all)
  • Condensed Matter Physics

Fingerprint

Dive into the research topics of 'Control and reversal of the electrophoretic force on DNA in a charged nanopore'. Together they form a unique fingerprint.

Cite this