Scientists Attempt to Build the 1st Single Cell from Scratch -Will They Succeed?

The evolution of single cells was a staggeringly time-consuming process, requiring millions of years in literally ocean-sized vats of chemicals and collisions.  Which makes it particularly awesome that some Penn State researchers have decided "Hell, we can do that."

Not that they're trying to construct an entirely artificial life-form (which would be incredibly difficult and likely require Arnold Schwarzenegger to deal with).  Most modern cellular research looks at existing cells - which might sound obvious enough, until you realize just how amazingly complex a single cell is.  Current techniques examining microcellular structures or identifying gene functions are like trying to understand a space shuttle by hacking pieces off it and seeing what happens.

Professor Keating and her team are coming at the problem from the opposite extreme - instead of isolating parts of the vast ticking clockwork and trying to reverse-engineer them, they're building their own cell from scratch.  If a caveman wanted to build a way to move faster, he shouldn't start by studying a Ferrari carburettor cap - he should make something that rolls and see where he can go from there. The super-simple synthetic cell is a pair of polymers surrounded by a cytoplasmic shell.  These polymers react to stimuli (such as a sugar-rich environment) in different ways, emulating some very basic cell properties like polarity (having a preferred direction).  The scientists have observed the cell changing shape and "budding" under osmotic pressure, displaying these directional preferences which are fundamental to many real cell processes.  Building on this success, the team are jazzing up the surrounding cytoplasm, adding lipid molecules (just like a real cell) to give certain regions preferential properties.

They can't just keep adding pieces until they get the worlds tiniest Terminator - there are limits to the parts we can replace with synthetic structures.  Anybody who manages man-made mitochondria will win the Noble prize, while anyone who can build an replacement DNA double-helix has a fair shot at the title "God".  But by playing with the worlds tiniest and most interesting balloons, the researchers can provide valuable information for drug companies in the short term, and help understand how the vast the vast biological complexity we see in the world came from such simple roots in the long term.

Which is pretty good, as long term goals go.

Posted by Luke McKinney.

Simple Synthetic Cell http://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2008/05/080515171023.htm

Comments

[Rajnish Roy]

To create any simplest life cell of grass or anything else, without using, rather stealing, the pre-existing bio-material is an immensely astounding challenge. That compels us to introspect and realize how primitive and stupid humanity is when it comes to understanding the mystery called life on this tiny planet. We strut and pride upon our technological prowess which is so ludicrous and utterly childish. When will human being realize its limits as the worst kind of animal that is revengeful, murderous, biggest predator and utterly vain.
This is not to take away the credit and admiration for our scientists who are taking up the challenge to create a single cell. It is one small, daring and worthy step towards realizing where we stand as well as the immense depth and complexity of life as such.
Rajnish Roy