From biological surfaces to engineered systems: how synthetic and systems biology enable biomimetic design

Biological surfaces perform a wide range of functions, including communication, molecular exchange, defense, and movement. While these architectures have long inspired biomimetic surface engineering, most existing reviews focus on fabrication methods, often overlooking the biological mechanisms underlying the functions. This review examines how the structural and functional properties of biological surfaces can inform the design of advanced biomimetic systems. Using an integrative framework combining systems and synthetic biology, we establish key design principles derived from biological surfaces and illustrate their translation into engineered systems. Communication mechanisms such as directional reflection and electrochemical signaling, along with exchange processes like aquaporins or vesicle-based delivery, have informed advances in sensing, filtration, and drug delivery. Similarly, defensive strategies, including adaptive camouflage and antimicrobial surface architectures, offer opportunities for protective and responsive designs. In the context of movement, drag-reducing and adhesive surfaces have enabled innovations in robotics, smart textiles, and transport technologies. Systems biology provides quantitative, multiscale models of pattern formation, surface-mediated signaling, and organism-environment interactions, allowing the identification of key design rules. Complementarily, synthetic biology enables the engineering of living cells, tissues, and biohybrid systems capable of producing tailored surface chemistries, multiscale micro-nano architectures, and dynamic or stimuli-responsive behaviors inspired by laboratory observations. By synthesizing principles underlying surface-mediated communication, exchange, defense, and movement, this review outlines how integrating biological insight with systems-level modeling and synthetic engineering can redefine the next-generation of biomimetic designs.