Fluorescent structural DNA nanoballs functionalized with phosphate-linked nucleotide triphosphates.

Highly labeled DNA nanoballs functionalized with phosphate-linked nucleotide triphosphates (dNTPs) were developed as a source of dNTPs for DNA polymerase. The particles were prepared by strand-displacement polymerization from a self-complementary circular template. Imaged by atomic force microscopy, these functionalized particles appear as condensed fuzzy balls with diameters between 50 and 150 nm. They emit a bright fluorescent signal, detected in 2 ms exposures with a signal-to-noise ratio of 25 when imaged using a TIR fluorescence microscope.