Designing DNA nanostructures often involves more than just creating structures — it requires modifying them. Whether you’re untangling a strand, changing connections, or adjusting geometry, manually handling these edits can quickly become error-prone and tedious. Fortunately, Adenita, an extension of the SAMSON molecular design platform, offers a suite of specialized editors that simplify and accelerate structural modifications.
Let’s explore how these tools can make your work with DNA nanotech a little more peaceful — and a lot more efficient.
Why DNA editing matters
In DNA nanotechnology, designs are rarely static. You may need to:
- Join or split strands
- Tune twist angles for better mechanical fit
- Create new single or double strands at precise locations
- Delete or tag nucleotide segments
For all these use cases, Adenita’s editor tools are designed with DNA origami workflows in mind.
Key editors and what they do
Each editor in the Adenita toolkit corresponds to a specific action. Here are some highlights:
Break editor 🔗
The Break tool allows you to disconnect two consecutive nucleotides within the same strand. This helps when rearranging parts of a design without affecting the rest of the structure.
Connect editor 🔃
The Connect tool merges selected strand ends. You can connect both single- and double-stranded segments, automatically managing 5' and 3' orientation. Complex reconnections are simplified with automatic breaking and rejoining when mid-strand nucleotides are selected.
Twist editor 🌀
Adjusting helical twist along a double strand is essential for managing strain in DNA nanostructures. With this editor, you can dial the twist angle to suit your target geometry.
Tag editor 🏷️
This feature helps identify and annotate nucleotides. Useful for visual workflows or downstream processes requiring labeled sequences.
Delete editor 🧺
Simple but powerful — remove selected nucleotides or base pairs as needed.
Strand creator 🧬
Easily add single or double strands to your structure. Circular strands are supported too, enabling closed-loop design elements.
Nanotube and lattice editors 🧱
These tools let you build regularly structured features such as tubes or compact lattices of double-strands — useful in structural DNA nanotechnology or molecular scaffolding.
Getting started: No steep learning curve
Each of these tools is accessible via the left-side editors toolbar inside the Adenita interface. Click on the three dots (…) at the bottom of the toolbar to see all available editors. The icons are intuitive, and operations like click-and-drag or selecting objects in the 3D workspace follow standard conventions.
Conclusion
Editing DNA nanostructures is no longer a manual struggle. Adenita’s editors save time and reduce design friction—so you can focus more on building what matters. To explore all the tools and functionalities discussed here, check out the full documentation:
https://documentation.samson-connect.net/tutorials/adenita/adenita/
SAMSON and all SAMSON Extensions are free for non-commercial use. You can download the platform at https://www.samson-connect.net.