Building Blocks for a Tiny World

Ribonucleic acid, or RNA, is best known for shuttling messages from deoxyribonucleic acid, or DNA, to cells. The Purdue researchers programmed RNA molecules to fashion themselves into 3-D spirals, triangles, rods and hairpins, which the researchers say could make good homes for nanoscale machines, according to a report in the August issue of Nano Letters.