A new method developed by a team of researchers at Columbia University enables DNA strand to store more data. For the study, the team applied a small amount of electrical energy on DNA strands to allow more encoding than that possible with previously used methods. The findings of the study is published in the journal Science.
In fact, for many years, new ways to increase data storage capacity is what researchers are looking at. This is because storage requirements are expected to surpass capacity as demand skyrockets in the near future.
Erstwhile Research endorses encoding data into DNA strands
Meanwhile, prior research endorses that an approach of encoding data into strands of DNA is possible. For such research, in the early stages, researchers manually edited strands to increases characteristics to represent one or zero. For another more recent approach, researchers used CRISPR gene editing instrument. In fact, for most of these studies, DNA extracted from the tissue of dead animals used.
And, for even recent initiatives, DNA extracted from living animals used for longer efficacy. In addition, the information could possibly be passed on to offspring, thereby allowing data to be stored for long periods of time.
Earlier, in 2017, a team of researchers at Columbia University employed CRISPR to identify a certain signal. In particular, it involved detecting the presence of sugar molecules. Notably, the addition of these molecules manifested as gene expressions of plasmid DNA. Nonetheless, over a period, the editing process improved as genetic bits included to represent zeroes and ones. Unfortunately, the limitation of the system is it allowed to store only a few bits of data.
On the other hand, the use of a small electricity current enabled researchers to improve the method.
