Lab-Built Droplet Signals Growth and Division, Nudging Synthetic Life Forward
TL;DR
University of Minnesota synthetic biologist Kate Adamala and team created SpudCell, a lab-made droplet of 150–200 molecules carrying a 36-gene, 90,000-base-pair genome that can feed, grow, copy DNA, and divide about every 12 hours at 30°C. However ribosomes degrade over time and only about 30% of instances retain the full genome after five divisions, and the system is not yet a living cell. The work led to Biotic, a new initiative with $10 million in seed funding to advance synthetic cell development, with potential future applications in cancer therapies, carbon capture, and chemical manufacturing.
Topics:top-newsscience#artificial-life#biotechnology#cell-replication#genome-engineering#science#synthetic-biology
- Scientists build synthetic cell from scratch that can feed, grow and replicate Ground News
- This Cell Feeds, Grows and Reproduces. And It’s Manmade. The New York Times
- Scientists say they have built a basic component of life from scratch CNN
- ‘Beautiful blobs’: synthetic life a step closer as scientists make cells using lab-made DNA The Guardian
- Synthetic biology researchers think they’ve made a cell. Is it alive? statnews.com
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