Described herein are compositions composed of peptide nucleic acid strands. In some aspects the peptide nucleic acid strands are complementary to at least a portion of another peptide nucleic acid strand that may have one or more gamma substituents, where the ratio of PNA strands is least 1:1. Certain gamma substituents are capable of effecting attachment of a PNA strand to a cell. The disclosure also concerns construction of nanostructure platforms and vaccines and use of the inventive compositions in inhibiting disease states in mammals.
