scholarly journals Modularize and Unite: Toward Creating a Functional Artificial Cell

2021 ◽  
Vol 8 ◽  
Author(s):  
Chen Wang ◽  
Junzhu Yang ◽  
Yuan Lu
Keyword(s):  
Applied Research ◽  
Life Science ◽  
Living Cells ◽  
Living System ◽  
Functional Modules ◽  
Modular Construction ◽  
Significant Progress ◽  
Artificial Cells ◽  
The Past ◽  
Artificial Cell

An artificial cell is a simplified model of a living system, bringing breakthroughs into both basic life science and applied research. The bottom-up strategy instructs the construction of an artificial cell from nonliving materials, which could be complicated and interdisciplinary considering the inherent complexity of living cells. Although significant progress has been achieved in the past 2 decades, the area is still facing some problems, such as poor compatibility with complex bio-systems, instability, and low standardization of the construction method. In this review, we propose creating artificial cells through the integration of different functional modules. Furthermore, we divide the function requirements of an artificial cell into four essential parts (metabolism, energy supplement, proliferation, and communication) and discuss the present researches. Then we propose that the compartment and the reestablishment of the communication system would be essential for the reasonable integration of functional modules. Although enormous challenges remain, the modular construction would facilitate the simplification and standardization of an artificial cell toward a natural living system. This function-based strategy would also broaden the application of artificial cells and represent the steps of imitating and surpassing nature.

scholarly journals Microfluidics for Artificial Life: Techniques for Bottom-Up Synthetic Biology

Micromachines ◽  
2019 ◽  
Vol 10 (5) ◽  
pp. 299 ◽  
Author(s):  
Supramaniam ◽  
Ces ◽  
Salehi-Reyhani
Keyword(s):  
Synthetic Biology ◽  
Artificial Life ◽  
Living Cells ◽  
Cellular Biology ◽  
Artificial Cells ◽  
Bottom Up ◽  
Artificial Cell ◽  
Central Tenet ◽  
Cell Synthesis ◽  
New Generation

Synthetic biology is a rapidly growing multidisciplinary branch of science that exploits the advancement of molecular and cellular biology. Conventional modification of pre-existing cells is referred to as the top-down approach. Bottom-up synthetic biology is an emerging complementary branch that seeks to construct artificial cells from natural or synthetic components. One of the aims in bottom-up synthetic biology is to construct or mimic the complex pathways present in living cells. The recent, and rapidly growing, application of microfluidics in the field is driven by the central tenet of the bottom-up approach—the pursuit of controllably generating artificial cells with precisely defined parameters, in terms of molecular and geometrical composition. In this review we survey conventional methods of artificial cell synthesis and their limitations. We proceed to show how microfluidic approaches have been pivotal in overcoming these limitations and ushering in a new generation of complexity that may be imbued in artificial cells and the milieu of applications that result.

Recent progress on the organic and metal complex-based fluorescent probes for monitoring nitric oxide in living biological systems

2020 ◽  
Vol 18 (8) ◽  
pp. 1522-1549 ◽  
Author(s):  
Lizhen Wang ◽  
Juan Zhang ◽  
Xue An ◽  
Hongdong Duan
Keyword(s):  
Nitric Oxide ◽  
Metal Complex ◽  
Fluorescent Probes ◽  
Recent Progress ◽  
Biological Systems ◽  
Living Cells ◽  
Significant Progress ◽  
The Past

This article reviews the significant progress of novel fluorescent probes used for imaging NO in living cells and animals during the past five years.

scholarly journals Toward long-lasting artificial cells that better mimic natural living cells

2019 ◽  
Vol 3 (5) ◽  
pp. 597-607 ◽  
Author(s):  
Noël Yeh Martín ◽  
Luca Valer ◽  
Sheref S. Mansy
Keyword(s):  
Simple Model ◽  
Chemical Communication ◽  
New Technologies ◽  
Population Level ◽  
Living Cells ◽  
Model Systems ◽  
Biological Mechanisms ◽  
Artificial Cells ◽  
Artificial Cell ◽  
Natural Living

Chemical communication is ubiquitous in biology, and so efforts in building convincing cellular mimics must consider how cells behave on a population level. Simple model systems have been built in the laboratory that show communication between different artificial cells and artificial cells with natural, living cells. Examples include artificial cells that depend on purely abiological components and artificial cells built from biological components and are driven by biological mechanisms. However, an artificial cell solely built to communicate chemically without carrying the machinery needed for self-preservation cannot remain active for long periods of time. What is needed is to begin integrating the pathways required for chemical communication with metabolic-like chemistry so that robust artificial systems can be built that better inform biology and aid in the generation of new technologies.

Artificial cells containing sustainable energy conversion engines

2019 ◽  
Vol 3 (5) ◽  
pp. 573-578 ◽  
Author(s):  
Kwanwoo Shin
Keyword(s):  
Energy Conversion ◽  
Nicotinamide Adenine Dinucleotide ◽  
Sustainable Energy ◽  
Living Cells ◽  
Energy Transduction ◽  
Artificial Cells ◽  
Energy Conversion Process ◽  
Metabolic Reactions ◽  
Metabolic Activities ◽  
Reduced Nicotinamide Adenine Dinucleotide

Living cells naturally maintain a variety of metabolic reactions via energy conversion mechanisms that are coupled to proton transfer across cell membranes, thereby producing energy-rich compounds. Until now, researchers have been unable to maintain continuous biochemical reactions in artificially engineered cells, mainly due to the lack of mechanisms that generate energy-rich resources, such as adenosine triphosphate (ATP) and reduced nicotinamide adenine dinucleotide (NADH). If these metabolic activities in artificial cells are to be sustained, reliable energy transduction strategies must be realized. In this perspective, this article discusses the development of an artificially engineered cell containing a sustainable energy conversion process.

Nonsuicidal Self-Injury Among Youth

2018 ◽  
Author(s):  
Adam Bryant Miller ◽  
Maya Massing-Schaffer ◽  
Sarah Owens ◽  
Mitchell J. Prinstein
Keyword(s):  
Risk Factors ◽  
Applied Research ◽  
Evidence Based ◽  
Prevalence Rates ◽  
Evidence Based Treatment ◽  
The Past ◽  
Self Injury ◽  
Assessment Techniques ◽  
Basic And Applied Research ◽  
Nonsuicidal Self Injury

Nonsuicidal self-injury (NSSI) is direct, intentional harm to one’s own body performed without the intent to die. NSSI has a marked developmental onset reaching peak prevalence in adolescence. NSSI is present in the context of multiple psychological disorders and stands alone as a separate phenomenon. Research has accumulated over the past several decades regarding the course of NSSI. While great advances have been made, there remains a distinct need for basic and applied research in the area of NSSI. This chapter reviews prevalence rates, correlates and risk factors, and leading theories of NSSI. Further, it reviews assessment techniques and provides recommendations. Then, it presents the latest evidence-based treatment recommendations and provides a case example. Finally, cutting edge research and the next frontier of research in this area are outlined.

scholarly journals The emerging technology of biohybrid micro-robots: a review

2021 ◽  
Author(s):  
Zening Lin ◽  
Tao Jiang ◽  
Jianzhong Shang
Keyword(s):  
Self Assembly ◽  
Degrees Of Freedom ◽  
High Energy ◽  
Living Cells ◽  
Multiple Degrees Of Freedom ◽  
The Past ◽  
Great Prevalence ◽  
Performance Decline ◽  
High Energy Efficiency ◽  
Living Tissues

Abstract In the past few decades, robotics research has witnessed an increasingly high interest in miniaturized, intelligent, and integrated robots. The imperative component of a robot is the actuator that determines its performance. Although traditional rigid drives such as motors and gas engines have shown great prevalence in most macroscale circumstances, the reduction of these drives to the millimeter or even lower scale results in a significant increase in manufacturing difficulty accompanied by a remarkable performance decline. Biohybrid robots driven by living cells can be a potential solution to overcome these drawbacks by benefiting from the intrinsic microscale self-assembly of living tissues and high energy efficiency, which, among other unprecedented properties, also feature flexibility, self-repair, and even multiple degrees of freedom. This paper systematically reviews the development of biohybrid robots. First, the development of biological flexible drivers is introduced while emphasizing on their advantages over traditional drivers. Second, up-to-date works regarding biohybrid robots are reviewed in detail from three aspects: biological driving sources, actuator materials, and structures with associated control methodologies. Finally, the potential future applications and major challenges of biohybrid robots are explored. Graphic abstract

scholarly journals Enduring Cell Lines: Parents’ Experiences of Postmortem Tumor Banking in Childhood Cancer

2021 ◽  
pp. 107484072110014
Author(s):  
Nancy J. Moules ◽  
Catherine M. Laing ◽  
Wendy Pelletier ◽  
Gregory M. T. Guilcher ◽  
Jennifer A. Chan
Keyword(s):  
Childhood Cancer ◽  
Pediatric Oncology ◽  
Common Factors ◽  
Living Cells ◽  
The Past ◽  
The Family ◽  
Deceased Donors ◽  
Cure Rates ◽  
The Impact ◽  
Parents Experiences

While cure rates in pediatric oncology have improved over the past 30 years, childhood cancer remains the second leading cause of death in children aged 1 to 14. Developing therapies often require using cancerous tissues, which may come from deceased donors. Tumor banks collect, store, and distribute these donated samples. While tumor banking is more common, factors that contribute to parents’ decision and the impact of it on the family are not well understood. The purpose of this hermeneutic study was to understand the meaning and impact of tumor banking for parents of children who have died from cancer. Findings suggest that parents donating their child’s tumors unexpectedly found a sense of meaning in their loss. They also found a legacy of their child’s life; the living cells in some ways assisted the parents with grief. Aspects of this sensitive conversation and decision are discussed from the perspective of the parents’ experiences.

DESIGN DISCOURSE AND THE COGNITIVE SCIENCE OF DESIGN

2014 ◽  
Vol 79 (1) ◽  
pp. 37-53
Author(s):  
Jeroen de Ridder
Keyword(s):  
Cognitive Science ◽  
Science And Religion ◽  
The Other ◽  
Significant Progress ◽  
The Past ◽  
The One ◽  
Bare Bones ◽  
Single Focus

Much of Alvin Plantinga’s Where the Conflict Really Lies(2011) will contain few surprises for those who have been following his work over the past decades. This —I hasten to add — is nothing against the book. The fact alone that his ideas on various topics, which have appeared scattered throughout the literature, are now actualized, applied to the debate about the (alleged) conflict between science and religion, and organized into an overarching argument with a single focus makes this book worthwhile. Moreover, I see this book making significant progress on two opposite ends of the spectrum of views about science and religion. On the one end, we find the so-called new atheists and other conflict-mongers. Compared to the overheated rhetoric that oozes from their writings, this book is a breath of fresh air. Plantinga cuts right to the chase and soberly exposes the bare bones of the new atheists’ arguments. It immediately becomes clear how embarrassingly bare these bones really are. On the other end of the spectrum are theologians and scientists who envisage harmony and concord between science and religion.

scholarly journals Calcium Signaling in Plant Programmed Cell Death

Cells ◽  
2021 ◽  
Vol 10 (5) ◽  
pp. 1089
Author(s):  
Huimin Ren ◽  
Xiaohong Zhao ◽  
Wenjie Li ◽  
Jamshaid Hussain ◽  
Guoning Qi ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Cell Death ◽  
Programmed Cell Death ◽  
Abiotic Stresses ◽  
Animal Studies ◽  
Future Research ◽  
Significant Progress ◽  
Biotic And Abiotic Stresses ◽  
Stress Perception ◽  
The Past

Programmed cell death (PCD) is a process intended for the maintenance of cellular homeostasis by eliminating old, damaged, or unwanted cells. In plants, PCD takes place during developmental processes and in response to biotic and abiotic stresses. In contrast to the field of animal studies, PCD is not well understood in plants. Calcium (Ca2+) is a universal cell signaling entity and regulates numerous physiological activities across all the kingdoms of life. The cytosolic increase in Ca2+ is a prerequisite for the induction of PCD in plants. Although over the past years, we have witnessed significant progress in understanding the role of Ca2+ in the regulation of PCD, it is still unclear how the upstream stress perception leads to the Ca2+ elevation and how the signal is further propagated to result in the onset of PCD. In this review article, we discuss recent advancements in the field, and compare the role of Ca2+ signaling in PCD in biotic and abiotic stresses. Moreover, we discuss the upstream and downstream components of Ca2+ signaling and its crosstalk with other signaling pathways in PCD. The review is expected to provide new insights into the role of Ca2+ signaling in PCD and to identify gaps for future research efforts.

scholarly journals Single-Molecule Kinetics in Living Cells

2019 ◽  
Vol 88 (1) ◽  
pp. 635-659 ◽  
Author(s):  
Johan Elf ◽  
Irmeli Barkefors
Keyword(s):  
Single Molecule ◽  
Living Cells ◽  
The Past

In the past decades, advances in microscopy have made it possible to study the dynamics of individual biomolecules in vitro and resolve intramolecular kinetics that would otherwise be hidden in ensemble averages. More recently, single-molecule methods have been used to image, localize, and track individually labeled macromolecules in the cytoplasm of living cells, allowing investigations of intermolecular kinetics under physiologically relevant conditions. In this review, we illuminate the particular advantages of single-molecule techniques when studying kinetics in living cells and discuss solutions to specific challenges associated with these methods.

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