Science and Technology Daily, Beijing, December 6th (Reporter Zhang Jiaxin) According to a paper published in the latest issue of Nature Chemistry, an international research team led by Darmstadt University of Technology in Germany and the University of Fribourg in Switzerland has achieved a breakthrough in the synthesis of artificial cells using synthetic materials. These cells are manufactured through a process called biocatalytic polymerization induced self-assembly (BioPISA), representing a significant advancement in the field of synthetic biology. Artificial cells are microstructures that mimic the characteristics of living cells. They are important microreactors that promote chemical reactions and molecular systems engineering, serve as hosts for synthetic biological pathways, and are also important tools for studying the origin of life. The team developed an enzymatically synthesized polymer microcapsule and used it to encapsulate the soluble contents of bacterial cells (i.e. cytoplasmic sol), creating artificial cells capable of producing a range of proteins internally, including fluorescent proteins, actin, which produces cytoskeletal like structures, and alkaline phosphatase, which is found in the biomineralization process of human bones. The expression of proteins not only mimics the basic characteristics of living cells, but also demonstrates the potential of these artificial cells in various applications, from drug delivery to tissue engineering. The new research fills an important gap in synthetic biology, which is the ability to combine synthetic materials with enzyme processes to create complex artificial cells, just like real cells, opening up new avenues for creating mimics that are structurally and functionally similar to biological cells. Researchers point out that enzyme catalyzed free radical polymerization is key to manufacturing these artificial cells. Enzymes will synthesize polymer capsules with nano and micrometer sizes from self-assembled polymers during the polymerization process. This is a very simple but effective method for preparing artificial cells. In future work, the research team's goal is to utilize proteins expressed in artificial cells to catalyze further polymerization, thereby mimicking the growth and replication of natural cells. (Lai Xin She)