![]() Being able to make different types of molecular knots means that scientists should be able to probe how knotting affects strength and elasticity of materials which will enable them to weave polymer strands to generate new types of materials. The same group had previously tied the world’s tiniest knot and now progressed their research here by using basic methods which would be familiar to anyone who joined the Scouts. Joining the end groups prevents the knot untying when the metal atoms are removed.” The two green sites bind to a copper atom the three purple sites bind to a lutetium atom. Professor David Leigh, from The University of Manchester led the research, he said: “We were able to tie different knots in a molecular strand by using metal atoms to fold and entwine the strand. Biology uses ‘molecular assistants’ called chaperones to fold proteins into knotted structures and the Manchester scientists applied the same concept to a synthetic molecular strand using metal atoms to guide the folding process. The new research published today in journal Nature, demonstrates how the scientists were able to mimic natural molecular biological processes to achieve lab-made alternatives for a range of potential applications. Although some DNA and protein molecules exist in knotted form, previously it has not been possible to tie a molecule into more than one complex knot. Some of the most advanced equipment ever developed, including the NASA Curiosity Rover used on Mars, use knots to perform key tasks. ![]() The group based at The University of Manchester have developed a way to tie an artificial 15 nanometre (15 millionths of a millimetre) molecular strand into any one of three different knots just as if using a piece of string.Ī piece of string can be tied into different knots, some with distinctive properties that can be exploited for different functions from shoelaces to nooses, hitches, bends and stopper knots. ![]() A group of chemists from Manchester have successfully tied a series of microscopic knots using individual molecules for the first time, ushering in the advent of a form of nano-scale weaving which could create a new generation of advanced materials. ![]()
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