Department of Chemistry, Imperial College London, Molecular Sciences Research Hub, London W12 0BZ, UK.
Department of Chemical Engineering, Imperial College London, South Kensington, London SW7 2AZ, UK.
Proc Natl Acad Sci U S A. 2023 Aug 29;120(35):e2307772120. doi: 10.1073/pnas.2307772120. Epub 2023 Aug 21.
Artificial cells are biomimetic structures formed from molecular building blocks that replicate biological processes, behaviors, and architectures. Of these building blocks, hydrogels have emerged as ideal, yet underutilized candidates to provide a gel-like chassis in which to incorporate both biological and nonbiological componentry which enables the replication of cellular functionality. Here, we demonstrate a microfluidic strategy to assemble biocompatible cell-sized hydrogel-based artificial cells with a variety of different embedded functional subcompartments, which act as engineered synthetic organelles. The organelles enable the recreation of increasingly biomimetic behaviors, including stimulus-induced motility, content release through activation of membrane-associated proteins, and enzymatic communication with surrounding bioinspired compartments. In this way, we showcase a foundational strategy for the bottom-up construction of hydrogel-based artificial cell microsystems which replicate fundamental cellular behaviors, paving the way for the construction of next-generation biotechnological devices.
人工细胞是由分子构建块形成的仿生结构,可复制生物过程、行为和结构。在这些构建块中,水凝胶作为理想的、但未充分利用的候选材料脱颖而出,为包含生物和非生物组件的凝胶状底盘提供了支持,从而实现细胞功能的复制。在这里,我们展示了一种微流控策略,用于组装具有各种不同嵌入式功能亚组件的生物相容性细胞大小的水凝胶基人工细胞,这些亚组件充当工程合成细胞器。这些细胞器使越来越仿生的行为得以重现,包括通过激活膜相关蛋白引发的刺激诱导运动、通过内容释放以及与周围仿生隔室的酶促通讯。通过这种方式,我们展示了一种基础策略,用于自下而上构建基于水凝胶的人工细胞微系统,复制基本的细胞行为,为构建下一代生物技术设备铺平了道路。