Expanding DNA Origami Design Freedom with De Novo Synthesized Scaffolds.

The construction of DNA origami nanostructures is heavily dependent on the folding of the scaffold strand, which is typically a single-stranded DNA genome extracted from a bacteriophage (M13). Custom scaffolds can be prepared in a number of methods, but they are not widely accessible to a broad user base in the DNA nanotechnology community. Here, we explored new design and construction possibilities with custom scaffolds prepared in our cost- and time-efficient production pipeline.

Mechanical activation-enhanced metal-organic coordination strategy to fabricate high-performance starch/polyvinyl alcohol films by extrusion blowing.

The production of high-performance starch-based packaging films by extrusion blowing is challenging, ascribed to poor processability of the blend precursors. In this study, a new strategy of mechanical activation (MA)-enhanced metal-organic coordination was proposed to improve the processability of starch (St)/polyvinyl alcohol (PVA) blend precursor, with calcium acetate (CA) as a chelating agent and glycerol as a plasticizer. MA pretreatment activated the hydroxyl groups of starch and PVA for constructing strong metal-organic coordination between CA and St/PVA during reactive extrusion, which effectively enhanced the melt processing properties of the blend precursor, contributing to the fabrication of high-performance St/PVA films by the extrusion-blowing method.

Fabrication of biodegradable and cold-water-soluble starch/polyvinyl alcohol films as inner packaging materials of pesticides: Enhanced emulsification, dispersibility, and efficacy.

Developing environmentally friendly film materials for packaging pesticides is significant yet challenging. The use of native starch for preparing inner packaging materials of pesticides is limited by its physicochemical properties. In this study, a novel strategy of synergetic mechanical activation (MA)-enhanced solid-phase esterification of starch and cooperative combination of starch and polyvinyl alcohol (PVA) was proposed to fabricate biodegradable and cold-water-soluble starch (St)/PVA films.