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Interface Engineering in Multiphase Systems toward Synthetic Cells and Organelles: From Soft Matter Fundamentals to Biomedical Applications
Author(s) -
Liu Zhou,
Zhou Wen,
Qi Cheng,
Kong Tiantian
Publication year - 2020
Publication title -
advanced materials
Language(s) - English
Resource type - Journals
SCImago Journal Rank - 10.707
H-Index - 527
eISSN - 1521-4095
pISSN - 0935-9648
DOI - 10.1002/adma.202002932
Subject(s) - protocell , nanoreactor , nanotechnology , artificial cell , synthetic biology , compartmentalization (fire protection) , materials science , vesicle , membrane , chemistry , biology , bioinformatics , nanoparticle , biochemistry , enzyme
Synthetic cells have a major role in gaining insight into the complex biological processes of living cells; they also give rise to a range of emerging applications from gene delivery to enzymatic nanoreactors. Living cells rely on compartmentalization to orchestrate reaction networks for specialized and coordinated functions. Principally, the compartmentalization has been an essential engineering theme in constructing cell‐mimicking systems. Here, efforts to engineer liquid–liquid interfaces of multiphase systems into membrane‐bounded and membraneless compartments, which include lipid vesicles, polymer vesicles, colloidosomes, hybrids, and coacervate droplets, are summarized. Examples are provided of how these compartments are designed to imitate biological behaviors or machinery, including molecule trafficking, growth, fusion, energy conversion, intercellular communication, and adaptivity. Subsequently, the state‐of‐art applications of these cell‐inspired synthetic compartments are discussed. Apart from being simplified and cell models for bridging the gap between nonliving matter and cellular life, synthetic compartments also are utilized as intracellular delivery vehicles for nuclei acids and nanoreactors for biochemical synthesis. Finally, key challenges and future directions for achieving the full potential of synthetic cells are highlighted.