tecto-

RNA tectonics

Laboratory-based construction of RNA nanoscopic supramolecules of predictable shape based on ordering of hairpin loops and the arrangement of the reactive molecular terminals. Individual RNA molecules are termed tectoRNAs, and assembly is guided by such entities as noncovalent loop-loop intermediaries termed kissing-loop complexes. Assembled constructs are named with the prefix tecto-, such as tectosquare.