Sebbe Blokhuizen studies computational physics and researches about DNA origami

During his internship project he worked with DNA origami which is a technique for creating nanoscale structures. The result can be used in various fields, such as drug delivery, biosensing, and nanoelectronics. Sebbe is a Dutch student and when he's done with his thesis he will go on a trip to the Andes Mountain before going back to the Netherlands.

Sebbe Blokhuizen, Master Student in Computational Physics
Sebbe Blokhuizen, Master Student in Computational Physics
 

What have you been studying at Fysikum and for how long?

"I am current in the third and final year of my master programme in computational physics. I decided to take an extra semester in order to follow more courses in the field of computer science and simulation techniques. Then I had some delay in my studies because my dad passed away just before the start my thesis. I am currently in the last months of my thesis at a company in the Netherlands called Sioux Technologies, with the goal of simulating X-ray spectroscopy in electron microscopes."

 

Tell us something about yourself

"I am a Dutch student, and I did my bachelor's in nanobiology at Delft University of Technology. During this time, I found that I was especially interested in the courses related to physics and decided to follow a bridging programme to applied physics. After this I spent a year working in the industry in order to figure out which exact master programme I wanted to pursue.

It is during my bachelor studies that I first learned about the concept of DNA origami. When I saw an advertisement on the walls at Albanova about an open position at the Högberg lab about their research on transforming arbitrary mesh models into DNA origami, I immediately applied to do my internship project there."

 

What’s DNA Origami?

"DNA origami is a technique for creating nanoscale structures by folding a long strand of DNA into a desired shape by short "staple" strands. By carefully designing the sequence of these staple strands, the DNA molecule can be folded into any desired two- or three-dimensional shape. The resulting structures can be used in various fields, such as drug delivery, biosensing, and nanoelectronics. The aim of the research paper was to increase the rigidity of these structures by routing the DNA molecule in a clever way onto itself in order to create arbitrary reinforced structures."

 

What are your future plans?

"When I am done with my thesis, I am planning to make a trip to South America and go hiking in the Andes mountains for 2 months. After that, I plan on finding a job in the industry back in the Netherlands."

 

More information

Computer-Aided Design of A-Trail Routed Wireframe DNA Nanostructures with Square Lattice Edges ACS Nano

Master's Programme in Computational Physics The Department of Physics, Stockholm University