Probing DNA in nanopores via tunneling: From sequencing to "quantum" analogies

School Colloquium

Fast and low-cost DNA sequencing methods would revolutionize medicine: a person could have his/her full genome sequenced so that drugs could be tailored to his/her specific illnesses; doctors could know in advance patients’ likelihood to develop a given ailment; cures to major diseases could be found faster [1]. However, this goal of “personalized medicine” is hampered today by the high cost and slow speed of DNA sequencing methods. In this talk, I will discuss the sequencing protocol we suggest which requires the measurement of the distributions of transverse currents during the translocation of single-stranded DNA into nanopores [2-5]. I will support our conclusions with a combination of molecular dynamics simulations coupled to quantum mechanical calculations of electrical current in experimentally realizable systems [2-5]. I will also discuss recent experiments that support these theoretical predictions. In addition, I will show how this relatively unexplored area of research at the interface between solids, liquids, and biomolecules at the nanometer length scale is a fertile ground to study quantum phenomena that have a classical counterpart, such as ionic quasi-particles, ionic “quantized” conductance [6,7] and Coulomb blockade [8].

[1] M. Zwolak, M. Di Ventra, Physical Approaches to DNA Sequencing and Detection, Rev. Mod. Phys. 80, 141 (2008).

[2] M. Zwolak and M. Di Ventra, Electronic signature of DNA nucleotides via transverse transport, Nano Lett. 5, 421 (2005).

[3] J. Lagerqvist, M. Zwolak, and M. Di Ventra, Fast DNA sequencing via transverse electronic transport, Nano Lett. 6, 779 (2006).

[4] J. Lagerqvist, M. Zwolak, and M. Di Ventra, Influence of the environment and probes on rapid DNA sequencing via transverse electronic transport, Biophys. J. 93, 2384 (2007).

[5] M. Krems, M. Zwolak, Y.V. Pershin, and M. Di Ventra, Effect of noise on DNA sequencing via transverse electronic transport, Biophys. J. 97, 1990, (2009).

[6] M. Zwolak, J. Lagerqvist, and M. Di Ventra, Ionic conductance quantization in nanopores, Phys. Rev.Lett. 103, 128102 (2009).

[7] M. Zwolak, J. Wilson, and M. Di Ventra, Dehydration and ionic conductance quantization in nanopores, J. Phys. Cond. Matt. 22 454126 (2011).

[8] M. Krems and M. Di Ventra, Ionic Coulomb blockade in nanopores arXiv:1103.2749.