Hierarchical access to encoded data on DNA nanostructures using administrator and user keys

DNA nanotechnology has shown great potential for molecular information encoding and controlled access. With the remarkable progress of DNA data storage systems, it is imperative to develop DNA-based hierarchical access techniques to manage user data. However, to our knowledge, this aspect has yet to be fully explored. Herein, we propose a data management system on the carrier of reconfigurable DNA nanostructure, which enables hierarchical access to encoded data. The system employs two types of molecular triggers-polymerase and DNA strand sets-to induce conformational changes of the nanostructure. These structural transitions allow the transformation of pre-patterned binding sites into readable data arrays. The polymerase universally triggers transformations in different carriers, functioning as a high-level administrator key, while the DNA strand set specifically transforms a particular structure, serving as a low-level user key. In a multi-user scenario, we encoded multi-format messages to illustrate data compatibility. Atomic force microscopy results demonstrated that the admin key granted access to all users' data, while user keys provided access only to their designated data. This strategy provides a framework for hierarchical data access on DNA carriers and may inspire the development of more sophisticated DNA-based information security solutions by restricting unauthorized access and isolating user privacy.