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What are Cells?

What are Cells?

Cells are the smallest and basic units of life, whether it is a single cell that forms the entire organism, e.g., in a bacterium or trillions of them, e.g., in humans. No matter what organism a cell is a part of, they share specific characteristics.
Basic Characteristics of Cells
A living cell has a plasma membrane, a bilayer of lipids that separates the aqueous solution inside the cell called the cytoplasm from the outside environment.
Furthermore, a living cell possesses genetic information...

What are Cells?

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Cells are the smallest and basic units of life, whether it is a single cell that forms the entire organism, e.g., in a bacterium, or trillions of them, e.g., in humans. No matter what organism a cell is a part of, they share specific characteristics.
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Related Experiment Video

Updated: Feb 7, 2026

Quantitative Analysis of Cell Edge Dynamics during Cell Spreading

Quantitative Analysis of Cell Edge Dynamics during Cell Spreading

Published on: May 22, 2021

Cell-Like Micromotors.

Berta Esteban-Fernández de Ávila¹, Weiwei Gao¹, Emil Karshalev¹

¹Department of NanoEngineering , University of California, San Diego , La Jolla , California 92093 , United States.

Accounts of Chemical Research

|August 4, 2018

Summary

This summary is machine-generated.

Cell-like micromotors combine synthetic movement with biological functions for advanced in vivo applications. These biocompatible, cell-membrane-coated or cell-based machines offer enhanced capabilities for drug delivery and detoxification.

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Area of Science:

Biomedical Engineering
Nanotechnology
Materials Science

Background:

Micro- and nanosized machines are emerging as versatile agents for applications like detoxification and sensing.
Micromotors show promise in dynamic therapy, including drug delivery and microsurgery.
Practical in vivo use of synthetic micromotors requires biocompatible designs for complex biological fluids.

Purpose of the Study:

To highlight recent proof-of-concept examples of cell-like micromotors for in vivo tasks.
To discuss the design principles and actuation mechanisms of these biohybrid systems.
To explore the potential of cell-like micromotors in therapeutic and toxin-removing applications.

Main Methods:

Categorizing cell-like micromotors into cell membrane-coated and cell-based designs.
Reviewing various actuation mechanisms, including those utilizing natural cell motility.
Examining the integration of cellular components with synthetic micromachines.

Main Results:

Cell-like micromotors demonstrate efficient movement in complex biofluids like blood.
Biocompatibility of cell-derived materials minimizes immune response.
Incorporation of cellular functions enhances capabilities such as toxin binding and autonomous motion.

Conclusions:

Cell-like micromotors offer unique advantages for in vivo applications due to their biocompatibility and biomimetic functionalities.
These biohybrid systems represent a promising advancement for dynamic therapy and detoxification.
Further research is needed to address challenges for clinical translation and human trials.