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Updated: Oct 18, 2025

Using Synthetic Biology to Engineer Living Cells That Interface with Programmable Materials
Published on: March 9, 2017
Toward synthetic life: Biomimetic synthetic cell communication
Abbey O Robinson1, Orion M Venero1, Katarzyna P Adamala1
1Department of Genetics, Cell Biology and Development, University of Minnesota, Minneapolis, MN, USA.
Abstract:
Engineering synthetic minimal cells provide a controllable chassis for studying the biochemical principles of natural life, increasing our understanding of complex biological processes. Recently, synthetic cell engineering has enabled communication between both natural live cells and other synthetic cells. A system such as these enable studying interactions between populations of cells, both natural and artificial, and engineering small molecule cell communication protocols for a variety of basic research and practical applications. In this review, we summarize recent progress in engineering communication between synthetic and natural cells, and we speculate about the possible future directions of this work.
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