Researchers have unveiled a groundbreaking technology that allows for a range of data storage and computing capabilities—such as storing, retrieving, computing, erasing, or rewriting data—utilizing DNA instead of traditional electronics. Unlike previous DNA storage and computing methods, which could only manage some of these functions, this new approach covers all aspects.
Researchers from North Carolina State University and Johns Hopkins University have unveiled a groundbreaking technology that allows for a range of data storage and computing capabilities—such as storing, retrieving, computing, erasing, or rewriting data—utilizing DNA instead of traditional electronics. Unlike previous DNA storage and computing methods, which could only manage some of these functions, this new approach covers all aspects.
“In traditional computing technology, we often overlook the compatibility of how data is stored and processed,” comments Albert Keung, the project leader and co-corresponding author of a related paper. “In reality, data storage and processing occur in distinct sections of a computer, and current computers operate as complex networks of various technologies.” Keung serves as an associate professor of chemical and biomolecular engineering at NC State and is a Goodnight Distinguished Scholar.
Keung further explains, “DNA computing has faced challenges in how to efficiently store, retrieve, and compute data represented by nucleic acids. In electronic computing, the compatibility among components is a huge advantage. However, it was generally believed that DNA storage might be effective for long-term storage but would struggle to offer the full range of operations typical in conventional electronics, such as data storage and movement; the ability to read, erase, rewrite, and reload specific files; and doing all this in a programmable, reliable manner.”
“We have shown that DNA-based technologies can indeed be viable because we have successfully created one,” Keung adds.
The advancement of this technology stems from recent methods that have allowed for the creation of soft polymer materials with distinct structures.
“We specifically developed polymer formations known as dendricolloids. They start at microscale and branch out hierarchically, forming a network of nanoscale fibers,” explains Orlin Velev, co-corresponding author and the S. Frank and Doris Culberson Distinguished Professor of Chemical and Biomolecular Engineering at NC State. “This structure boasts a high surface area, allowing us to embed DNA among the nanofibrils while maintaining the data density that makes DNA a favorable option for data storage.”
“You could fit a thousand times the data of a laptop into DNA storage the size of a pencil eraser,” Keung remarks.
Kevin Lin, the paper’s first author and a former Ph.D. student at NC State, states, “The ability to identify DNA information from the nanofibers allows us to achieve many of the same functions as electronic devices. We can directly copy the DNA data from the surface of the material without damaging it. We can also erase specific DNA segments and rewrite them onto the same surface, much like how one deletes and rewrites data on a computer hard drive. This essentially allows for all the various functions of DNA data storage and computation. Additionally, we discovered that the dendricolloid material helps to preserve the DNA when it’s deposited.”
“In a way, Keung’s team is providing microcircuits, while the dendricolloidal material created by my team acts as the circuit board,” Velev elaborates. “Our collaborator Adriana San Miguel helped incorporate these materials into microfluidic channels to guide the flow of nucleic acids and reagents, enabling data transfer and initiating computing commands. Meanwhile, Winston Timp’s lab at Johns Hopkins contributed their knowledge of nanopore sequencing, allowing us to read the RNA data after copying it from the DNA present on the material’s surface. James Tuck’s lab at NC State developed algorithms that convert data into nucleic acid sequences and vice versa, while also managing potential errors.”
The research team has introduced their new data storage and computing technology, termed a “primordial DNA store and compute engine,” which successfully solves basic sudoku and chess problems. Testing suggests it could preserve data securely for thousands of years without the degradation of the information-storing DNA.
“Moreover, the dendrocolloidal host material is relatively economical and simple to produce,” adds Velev.
Keung expresses, “There is tremendous enthusiasm for molecular data storage and computation, yet significant questions about the practicality of the field remain. We looked back at computing’s history, particularly how the creation of ENIAC propelled progress in the field. Our aim was to create a development that would inspire the domain of molecular computing, and we hope our work serves as a step in that direction.”
The paper titled “A Primordial DNA Store and Compute Engine” is set to be published on August 22 in the journal Nature Nanotechnology. Co-authors include Kevin Volkel and Andrew Clark, former Ph.D. students of NC State; Cyrus Cao and Rachel Polak, current Ph.D. students; Adriana San Miguel, an associate professor at NC State; James Tuck, a professor of electrical and computer engineering; Winston Timp, an associate professor at Johns Hopkins University; and Paul Hook, a postdoctoral researcher at Johns Hopkins.
This research received support from the National Science Foundation with grants 2027655 and 1901324.
Keung and Tuck are co-founders of DNAli Data Technologies, indicating their potential interest in advancing and commercializing DNA-based information systems. Keung, Volkel, Tuck, and Lin are listed as inventors on patent application WO 2020/096679, licensed to DNAli Data Technologies and influencing part of this ongoing work.
