BIOTECHNOLOGY
Expanding DNA storage capacity

DNA makes a good archival medium for information storage, thanks to its remarkably high physical density and the relatively low cost of high-throughput sequencing. However, its synthesis presents a challenge both technically and
economically. Two recent studies invented similar methods to augment DNA-based information storage capacity. Instead of using only four standard DNA nucleotides (A, T, G, and C), Choi et al. and Anavy et al. have developed platforms for reading and writing degenerate nucleotides and mixtures of nucleotides in various predetermined ratios. This expanded alphabet enables higher information content per synthesis cycle.

—SYM Sci. Rep. 9, 6582 (2019); Nat. Biotechnol. 37, 1229 (2019).