Scientists develop first synthetic cell with complete life cycle

Researchers at the University of Minnesota have developed the world's first synthetic cell with a complete life cycle, built entirely from non-living chemical components.

The new synthetic cell was described in the study prepared by associate professors Kate Adamala and Aaron Engelhart, together with their teams at the university's Faculty of Biological Sciences.

The SpudCell project, according to the institution, marks a major advance in biological engineering and, over time, could provide solutions to some of the most challenging problems in medicine and engineering.

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"This is probably the most exciting project I've ever worked on. We've replicated in chemistry what was previously only possible in biology: a cell's complete set of behaviors. It proves that life's most fundamental functions, like growth and replication, don't need a mysterious magical spark."

Professor Kate Adamala

Get to know SpudCell
SpudCell replicates the biological processes carried out by a living organism:

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- Replication of the life cycle of a biological cell: performs selection, genomic replication, growth, acquisition of resources through nutrition and genetically encoded division.
- Cell division without cytoskeleton: While natural cells divide using the cytoskeleton, SpudCell avoids the need to have this structure, using proteins that cluster on the surface of the membrane until mechanical stress causes the membrane to divide.
- Selection and competition: researchers have altered the DNA of some artificial cells to make them produce more fusion proteins, resulting in cells that grow faster and reproduce more. This version surpassed the original in speed and also in cases of nutrient scarcity, demonstrating selection and competition operating in a synthetic system.

SpudCell DNA
The human genome is approximately 3 million kilobases in size, and biologists have speculated that the genome of a living cell could be at least 113 kbp in size. The SpudCell genome, however, is only 90 kbp.

Instead of a single chromosome, the cell's genome is divided into seven separate DNA plasmids, allowing researchers to "program" the cell's functions independently.

By maintaining continuous development, SpudCell and its successors will be able to perform increasingly complex functions.

The future of research
Professor Adamala and partners outside the University are launching Biotic, a public benefit research and engineering institution to build the technical infrastructure necessary for engineering synthetic cells, to enable the participation of researchers from around the world.

According to the university, many of the products used daily, such as medicines, materials and industrial chemicals, require molecular transformations that are currently carried out by co-opting natural cells or using industrial chemistry with high energy costs.

Now, synthetic cells could carry out molecular transformations that industrial chemistry cannot, such as transforming molecular medicine, building precise therapeutic molecules, including medicines that incorporate never-before-used amino acids. Additionally, there may be materials that are grown rather than synthesized, and manufacturing approaches that operate at biological, not industrial, temperatures.

"We are showing that it is possible to engineer the basic functions of the cell. To fully realize the promise of this technology - to make it robust and practical - we need a joint international effort. Biotic's role is to focus engineering efforts and make them compatible with a shared platform.

SpudCell is that platform, and with Biotic establishing the collaboration protocols, we're excited to start applying this technology to serious challenges."

Professor Kate Adamala

To turn the construction of individual SpudCells into a production scale, the cell's seven DNA plasmids need to be consolidated into a single, more stable genome and additional molecular machineries need to be built.

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*Under the supervision of Carolina Figueiredo

Source: CNN