Synthetic Turing protocells: vesicle self-reproduction through symmetry-breaking instabilities
Open accessAbstract
The reproduction of a living cell requires a repeatable set of chemical events to be properly coordinated. Such events define a replication cycle, coupling the growth and shape change of the cell membrane with internal metabolic reactions. Although the logic of such process is determined by potentially simple physico-chemical laws, modelling of a full, self-maintained cell cycle is not trivial. Here we present a novel approach to the problem that makes use of so-called symmetry breaking instabilities as the engine of cell growth and division. It is shown that the process occurs as a consequence of the breaking of spatial symmetry and provides a reliable mechanism of vesicle growth and reproduction. Our model opens the possibility of a synthetic protocell lacking information but displaying self-reproduction under a very simple set of chemical reactions.
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Models have shown that cell division through growth and instability is possible in an information-free context where only metabolism and compartment are present, both in amphiphile-based vesicles and micelles.
“But models have also shown that such a possibility exists in an information-free context where only metabolism and compartment are present, both in amphiphile-based vesicles [167–169] and micelles [164,170].”
From Fundamental constraints to the logic of living systems (2024) · cites this paper as [168]
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- Authors
- Macía, J., & Solé, R. V.
- Affiliations
- Institució Catalana de Recerca i Estudis Avançats (ES)
- Corresponding author
- Macía, Javier
- Venue
- Philosophical Transactions of the Royal Society B: Biological Sciences
- Publisher
- The Royal Society
- Published
- 2007-05-09
- Volume
- 362
- Issue
- 1486
- Pages
- 1821-1829
- ISSN
- 0962-8436 (ISSN-L)
- 1471-2970
- PMC
- PMC2442396
- OpenAlex
- W2137490447
- Cited by
- 30
- References
- 48
- Citations by year
- 2026: 1 · 2025: 1 · 2024: 2 · 2023: 1 · 2021: 2 · 2019: 3 · 2016: 2 · 2015: 1 · 2014: 3 · 2012: 2
- FWCI
- 2.00
- Type
- journal article
- Language
- en
- Open access
- green
- www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov
- Locations
- Philosophical Transactions of the Royal Society B Biological Sciences (publishedVersion)
- PubMed Central (publishedVersion)
- PubMed (publishedVersion)
- arXiv (Cornell University) (submittedVersion)
- arXiv (Cornell University)
- Funders
- Santa Fe Institute
- Topics
- Physical Sciences › Physics and Astronomy › Astronomy and Astrophysics › Origins and Evolution of Life
- Physical Sciences › Computer Science › Computational Theory and Mathematics › Cellular Automata and Applications
- Life Sciences › Biochemistry, Genetics and Molecular Biology › Molecular Biology › RNA and protein synthesis mechanisms
- Keywords
- synthetic protocells, symmetry-breaking instability, cell division, cell growth, cell cycle, membrane growth, chemical reaction networks, self-replication
- MeSH terms
- Cell Membrane, Cell Physiological Phenomena, Computer Simulation, Models, Biological
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