Researchers from the United States have developed synthetic microcapsules that can perform the functions of living cells – absorb, “digest” and allocate substances. The article of scientists was published in the journal Nature.
So far, the researchers have failed to create analogues of living cells with the ability to actively transport substances through a membrane or cell layer. Scientists from New York and Chicago universities created a spherical membrane from polymers with a lymphocyte size and a hole was done in it – creating a nanocanal for membrane transport.
The energy of ATP and mitochondria is produced for this process in cells. The researchers were added to Nanokanal a photocatalyst, which under the action of ultraviolet light or when a change pH creates a low pressure region, attracting the “cargo” to the membrane. Turning off the light leaves the substance in the membrane for “recycling”. The reverse process allows you to push the load out.
Development showed its performance in a number of experiments. In one of them, artificial cells successfully cleaned water from polluting impurities. In another microcapsule, the intestinal wand was able to “deeply”, which, according to researchers, says that it can be used as an antibacterial agent. Maybe artificial cells are used for drug delivery.