University of Minnesota builds SpudCell world's 1st self-feeding synthetic cell
Scientists at the University of Minnesota just built SpudCell, the world's first synthetic cell that can actually feed itself, grow, and make copies.
It's made from about 150 to 200 simple chemicals (no real biology needed) but still manages to pull off basic life moves like genome replication and division.
As lead researcher Kate Adamala put it, this proves you don't need natural cell parts to get the essentials of life working.
SpudCell requires external food and 86°F
SpudCell is a big step, but it's far from perfect. It needs outside food, has to be kept at 86 degrees Fahrenheit, and takes 12 hours to divide, way slower than regular bacteria. Plus, it can't make its own proteins yet.
Some scientists are excited (J. Craig Venter Institute synthetic cell researcher John Glass, who was not involved in the research, called SpudCell "Kate Adamala's team designed and built a nonliving synthetic cell that is much closer to being 'alive' than anything else produced by the bottom-up synthetic cell field"), while others like Stanford University associate professor of bioengineering Drew Endy say it isn't truly alive: more like a super-complex chemistry project.
Still, SpudCell could pave the way for new tech in medicine or climate science one day.