Private Information Retrieval for Large-Scale DNA-Based Data Storage

2026-06-12

AI Summary

This work addresses the challenge of enabling private information retrieval (PIR) in large-scale DNA data storage, where biochemical operational constraints hinder the direct application of conventional digital PIR schemes. For the first time, the study extends information-theoretically secure two-server PIR protocols to DNA-based storage systems, proposing two novel adaptation strategies that jointly account for biochemical feasibility, privacy guarantees, and retrieval efficiency. By integrating molecular manipulation techniques with PIR mechanisms, the authors design a privacy-preserving query protocol tailored to biochemical environments. Experimental validation on a prototype system demonstrates its potential to achieve practical retrieval under stringent privacy requirements, revealing a new trade-off between privacy and efficiency inherent to DNA data storage.

Abstract

We investigate Private Information Retrieval (PIR) in the context of synthetic DNA-based data storage. While PIR is a well-studied primitive for digital databases, extending it to DNA-based databases presents unique challenges arising from biochemical query mechanisms and their complexity. We propose two approaches for adapting two-server PIR protocols to DNA-based storage, balancing privacy, efficiency, and feasibility. These approaches illustrate how information-theoretic privacy trade-offs manifest in DNA-based storage systems.

Problem

• Private Information Retrieval
• DNA-based data storage
• biochemical query
• privacy
• large-scale storage

Innovation

• Private Information Retrieval
• DNA-based data storage
• two-server PIR
• information-theoretic privacy
• biochemical query