Volume 14, Issue 11 1703812
Full Paper

Imparting Designer Biorecognition Functionality to Metal–Organic Frameworks by a DNA-Mediated Surface Engineering Strategy

Weiyu Ning

Weiyu Ning

CAS Key Laboratory for Biomedical Effects of Nanomaterials and Nanosafety, CAS Center for Excellence in Nanoscience, National Center for Nanoscience and Technology (NCNST), Beijing, 100190 China

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Zhenghan Di

Zhenghan Di

CAS Key Laboratory for Biomedical Effects of Nanomaterials and Nanosafety, CAS Center for Excellence in Nanoscience, National Center for Nanoscience and Technology (NCNST), Beijing, 100190 China

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Yingjie Yu

Yingjie Yu

Department of Materials Science and Engineering, Stony Brook University, Stony Brook, NY, 11794 USA

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Pingmei Zeng

Pingmei Zeng

Center for Chemistry of High-Performance & Novel Materials, Department of Chemistry, Zhejiang University, Hangzhou, 310027 China

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Chunzhi Di

Chunzhi Di

CAS Key Laboratory for Biomedical Effects of Nanomaterials and Nanosafety, CAS Center for Excellence in Nanoscience, National Center for Nanoscience and Technology (NCNST), Beijing, 100190 China

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Daquan Chen

Daquan Chen

School of Pharmacy, Yantai University, Yantai, 264005 China

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Xueqian Kong

Xueqian Kong

Center for Chemistry of High-Performance & Novel Materials, Department of Chemistry, Zhejiang University, Hangzhou, 310027 China

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Guangjun Nie

Guangjun Nie

CAS Key Laboratory for Biomedical Effects of Nanomaterials and Nanosafety, CAS Center for Excellence in Nanoscience, National Center for Nanoscience and Technology (NCNST), Beijing, 100190 China

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Yuliang Zhao

Corresponding Author

Yuliang Zhao

CAS Key Laboratory for Biomedical Effects of Nanomaterials and Nanosafety, CAS Center for Excellence in Nanoscience, National Center for Nanoscience and Technology (NCNST), Beijing, 100190 China

E-mail: [email protected], [email protected]Search for more papers by this author
Lele Li

Corresponding Author

Lele Li

CAS Key Laboratory for Biomedical Effects of Nanomaterials and Nanosafety, CAS Center for Excellence in Nanoscience, National Center for Nanoscience and Technology (NCNST), Beijing, 100190 China

E-mail: [email protected], [email protected]Search for more papers by this author
First published: 16 February 2018
Citations: 68

Abstract

Surface functionality is an essential component for processing and application of metal–organic frameworks (MOFs). A simple and cost-effective strategy for DNA-mediated surface engineering of zirconium-based nanoscale MOFs (NMOFs) is presented, capable of endowing them with specific molecular recognition properties and thus expanding their potential for applications in nanotechnology and biotechnology. It is shown that efficient immobilization of functional DNA on NMOFs can be achieved via surface coordination chemistry. With this strategy, it is demonstrated that such porphyrin-based NMOFs can be modified with a DNA aptamer for targeting specific cancer cells. Furthermore, the DNA–NMOFs can facilitate the delivery of therapeutic DNA (e.g., CpG) into cells for efficient recognition of endosomal Toll-like receptor 9 and subsequent enhanced immunostimulatory activity in vitro and in vivo. No apparent toxicity is observed with systemic delivery of the DNA–NMOFs in vivo. Overall, these results suggest that the strategy allows for surface functionalization of MOFs with different functional DNAs, extending the use of these materials to diverse applications in biosensor, bioimaging, and nanomedicine.

Conflict of Interest

The authors declare no conflict of interest.

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