DNA translocation through nanopores with salt gradients: The role of osmotic flow

TL;DR

This paper explains how osmotic flow and electrophoretic effects together influence DNA translocation through nanopores under salt gradients, aligning with recent experimental observations.

Contribution

It provides a quantitative model demonstrating the combined role of osmotic flow and electrophoresis in DNA capture rates under salt gradients.

Findings

Osmotic flow significantly affects DNA translocation.

Electrophoretic effects complement osmotic flow in the process.

Model matches experimental data on salt-gradient dependence.

Abstract

Recent experiments of translocation of double stranded DNA through nanopores [M. Wanunu \textit{et al.} Nature Nanotech. {\bf 5}, 160 (2010)] reveal that the DNA capture rate can be significantly influenced by a salt gradient across the pore. We show that osmotic flow combined with electrophoretic effects can quantitatively explain the experimental data on the salt-gradient dependence of the capture rate.