Researchers at the University of Twente’s research institute MESA+ are constructing molecular machines capable of exerting a measurable force at nanoscale and in fluid environment. The design of these machines is based on self-assembling supramolecular tubules which can accumulate and store energy from light and convert it into a mechanical work.. The tubules were inspired by the biomolecular structures that transport molecular cargo in cells. The research has been published in the leading science journal PNAS.