Matching Together Living Cells and Prototissues: Will There Be Chemistry?

Abstract

Scientific advancements in bottom‐up synthetic biology have led to the development of numerous models of synthetic cells, or protocells. To date, research has mainly focused on increasing the (bio)chemical complexity of these bioinspired micro‐compartmentalized systems, yet the successful integration of protocells with living cells remains one of the major challenges in bottom‐up synthetic biology. In this review, we aim to summarize the current state of the art in hybrid protocell/living cell and prototissue/living cell systems. Inspired by recent breakthroughs in tissue engineering, we review the chemical, bio‐chemical, and mechano‐chemical aspects that hold promise for achieving an effective integration of non‐living and living matter. The future production of fully integrated protocell/living cell systems and increasingly complex prototissue/living tissue systems not only has the potential to revolutionize the field of tissue engineering, but also paves the way for new technologies in (bio)sensing, personalized therapy, and drug delivery.