Constructing vesicle-based artificial cells with embedded living cells as organelle-like modules
File(s)s41598-018-22263-3.pdf (2.85 MB)
Published version
Author(s)
Type
Journal Article
Abstract
There is increasing interest in constructing artificial cells by functionalising lipid vesicles with biological and synthetic machinery. Due to their reduced complexity and lack of evolved biochemical pathways, the capabilities of artificial cells are limited in comparison to their biological counterparts. We show that encapsulating living cells in vesicles provides a means for artificial cells to leverage cellular biochemistry, with the encapsulated cells serving organelle-like functions as living modules inside a larger synthetic cell assembly. Using microfluidic technologies to construct such hybrid cellular bionic systems, we demonstrate that the vesicle host and the encapsulated cell operate in concert. The external architecture of the vesicle shields the cell from toxic surroundings, while the cell acts as a bioreactor module that processes encapsulated feedstock which is further processed by a synthetic enzymatic metabolism co-encapsulated in the vesicle.
Date Issued
2018-03-14
Date Acceptance
2018-02-15
Citation
Scientific Reports, 2018, 8 (1), pp.1-8
ISSN
2045-2322
Publisher
Nature Publishing Group
Start Page
1
End Page
8
Journal / Book Title
Scientific Reports
Volume
8
Issue
1
Copyright Statement
© The Author(s) 2018. This article is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution 4.0 International
License, which permits use, sharing, adaptation, distribution and reproduction in any medium or
format, as long as you give appropriate credit to the original author(s) and the source, provide a link to the Creative
Commons license, and indicate if changes were made. The images or other third party material in this
article are included in the article’s Creative Commons license, unless indicated otherwise in a credit line to the
material. If material is not included in the article’s Creative Commons license and your intended use is not permitted
by statutory regulation or exceeds the permitted use, you will need to obtain permission directly from the
copyright holder. To view a copy of this license, visit http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0/.
License, which permits use, sharing, adaptation, distribution and reproduction in any medium or
format, as long as you give appropriate credit to the original author(s) and the source, provide a link to the Creative
Commons license, and indicate if changes were made. The images or other third party material in this
article are included in the article’s Creative Commons license, unless indicated otherwise in a credit line to the
material. If material is not included in the article’s Creative Commons license and your intended use is not permitted
by statutory regulation or exceeds the permitted use, you will need to obtain permission directly from the
copyright holder. To view a copy of this license, visit http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0/.
Sponsor
Engineering & Physical Science Research Council (EPSRC)
Engineering & Physical Science Research Council (EPSRC)
Engineering & Physical Science Research Council (EPSRC)
Engineering & Physical Science Research Council (EPSRC)
Engineering & Physical Science Research Council (EPSRC)
Identifier
https://www.nature.com/articles/s41598-018-22263-3
Grant Number
EP/N016998/1
EP/K038648/1
EP/J017566/1
EP/H024425/1
EP/G00465X/1
Subjects
Science & Technology
Multidisciplinary Sciences
Science & Technology - Other Topics
SEMISYNTHETIC MINIMAL CELLS
LIPID VESICLES
DROPLET MICROFLUIDICS
ALAMAR BLUE
BIOLOGY
ENCAPSULATION
LIPOSOME
PROTEINS
COMPARTMENTALIZATION
PERMEABILITY
Artificial Cells
Bioreactors
Lipid Bilayers
Microfluidic Analytical Techniques
Models, Biological
Organelles
Organelles
Lipid Bilayers
Microfluidic Analytical Techniques
Bioreactors
Models, Biological
Artificial Cells
Publication Status
Published online
Article Number
4564
Date Publish Online
2018-03-14