Nicking Enzyme-Mediated Signal Rollback Mechanism for Programmable Access Control of Molecular Systems

Abstract

The programmability and high-density information storage characteristics of DNA molecular circuits have driven the rapid development of molecular information processing from single-function sensing and computing to integrated, secure, and controllable processing. However, existing molecular systems generally adopt a static access mode, with their authentication interfaces constantly exposed and insufficient fine-grained permission control, making them extremely vulnerable to bruteforce attacks. Here, we propose a molecular signal rollback mechanism based on nicking enzyme, which can roll back the abnormal state of molecular circuits activated by specific input instructions to the normal state, realizing the dynamic, reversible control of access permissions to molecular systems and overcoming the inherent defects of static access mode.Through modular design, the rollback dimension of the mechanism was further expanded, and a designated rollback module was constructed, enabling it to perform individual reset of specific instructions under multiple instruction inputs. This demonstrates fine-grained control over multiple tasks and multiple permissions in complex molecular systems. Finally, we constructed a molecular security system with a hidden authentication interface. By programming the logical relationship between rollback factors and input signals, we achieved proactive defense against unauthorized access and hierarchical permission backtracking, ultimately realizing dynamic and fine-grained information access control. This mechanism not only endows molecular systems with dynamic permission verification and on-demand information retrieval capabilities but also lays the foundation for building highly reliable next-generation nanoscale intelligent systems.