Engineering Synthetic Cells through Module Integration and Evolution

Life, the most complex and admirable machine that one could think of has evolved over billions of years to display a beautiful variety of mechanisms that keep cells adapting, self-maintaining, reproducing, and evolving. If we think about it, what is this magic? What are the mechanisms behind life’s origins and wonderful coordination? Attracted...

Biosynthesis of protein filaments for the creation of a minimal cell

Humanity has achieved to decipher the most fundamental mechanics of cellular life. Nevertheless, despite intense efforts there are still considerable gaps in our understanding of cellular processes. Traditionally, biologists investigate life by observation of existing lifeforms. In order to assign functions to biological components, it is common...

An FtsZ-centric approach to divide gene-expressing liposomes

The creation of artificial cells with the minimal set of components to exhibit self-maintenance, self-reproducibility and evolvability (in other words, to be considered alive) is one of the most exciting areas within the field of synthetic biology. Such entities, here called minimal cells, are constructed by either the top-down or bottom-up...

Synthetic biology meets liposome-based drug delivery

Synthetic biology is an emerging and rapidly expanding field of research focused on the assembly of novel biological systems with new functionalities tailored for different applications. Genetic circuits have been re-wired or constructed with elements from different organisms, and metabolic pathways have been engineered to endow cells with non...

Imitating nature to produce nacre-inspired composite materials with bacteria

In this study, a method for the bacterial production of a nacre-mimicking composite material was developed. Nacre (mother-of-pearl) is an organic-inorganic composite found in the inner lining of many mollusk shells and in pearls. It has a brick-and-mortar structure consisting of 95% aragonite (calcium carbonate) platelets and 5% organic matrix....

Reverse engineering of industrially relevant phenotypes in yeast: An integrated approach

Reverse engineering is the study of discovering the structure, function and operation of a device or system with the express aim to reconstruct its key functionalities. This principle is applied to many disciplines, from military, through computer engineering, to health, but also in metabolic engineering. In this context, reverse metabolic...