Photo: uchicago.edu
Capsules-analogs of living cells can pick up, transfer and release particles on command
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Tiny mechanical capsules can be used to clean up environmental contaminants, absorb microbes, and deliver drugs to the body.
Chemists from the United States have created cell-like structures that can selectively capture various substances and particles, transport them and recycle them. The scientists’ research was published in the journal Nature. reported University of Chicago.
In nature, living organisms need a way to transport molecules and chemicals to where they are needed in the body. Cells have complex systems for this, and until now it has been very difficult for specialists to recreate such systems.
“A single cell is actually one of the most sophisticated micromachines we know of. It is the first artificial system that can mimic this active transport process,” said lead author Stefano Sacanna, assistant professor of chemistry at New York University.
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Photo: uchicago.edu
The capsule diameter is two microns, which is slightly smaller than an erythrocyte
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Stefano and his colleagues took a big step towards creating a full-fledged analogue of a living cell by experimenting with droplets of organosilicon fatty substances, which they forced to swell using chemical reactions, and then strengthened their structure with polymers.
As a result, the same type of cell-like structures with a selectively permeable membrane arose. Experiments have shown that hollow spherical particles can be filled with molecules of various enzymes, inorganic catalysts and substances.
Such a mechanism is suitable for purifying water from oil droplets and other contaminants, targeted delivery of drugs and their gradual release into the bloodstream, as well as to fight microbes and viruses.
In the near future, chemists are planning to create new versions of artificial cells that will be able to exchange signals with neighbors and combine into complex structures.
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