Light-Activated Signaling in DNA-Encoded Sender–Receiver Architectures

Shuo Yang, Pascal A. Pieters, Alex Joesaar, Bas W. A. Bögels, Rens Brouwers, Iuliia Myrgorodska, Stephen Mann*, Tom F. A. de Greef*

*Corresponding author for this work

Research output: Contribution to journalArticle (Academic Journal)peer-review

42 Citations (Scopus)
100 Downloads (Pure)

Abstract

Collective decision making by living cells is facilitated by exchange of diffusible signals where sender cells release a chemical signal that is interpreted by receiver cells. A variety of nonliving artificial cell models have been developed in recent years that mimic various aspects of diffusion-based intercellular communication. However, localized secretion of diffusive signals from individual protocells, which is critical for mimicking biological sender–receiver systems, has remained challenging to control precisely. Here, we engineer light-responsive, DNA-encoded sender–receiver architectures, where protein–polymer microcapsules act as cell mimics and molecular communication occurs through diffusive DNA signals. We prepare spatial distributions of sender and receiver protocells using a microfluidic trapping array and set up a signaling gradient from a single sender cell using light, which activates surrounding receivers through DNA strand displacement. Our systematic analysis reveals how the effective signal range of a single sender is determined by various factors including the density and permeability of receivers, extracellular signal degradation, signal consumption, and catalytic regeneration. In addition, we construct a three-population configuration where two sender cells are embedded in a dense array of receivers that implement Boolean logic and investigate spatial integration of nonidentical input cues. The results offer a means for studying diffusion-based sender–receiver topologies and present a strategy to achieve the congruence of reaction-diffusion and positional information in chemical communication systems that have the potential to reconstitute collective cellular patterns.
Original languageEnglish
Pages (from-to)15992–16002
Number of pages11
JournalACS Nano
Volume14
Issue number11
Early online date20 Oct 2020
DOIs
Publication statusPublished - 24 Nov 2020

Research Groups and Themes

  • Bristol BioDesign Institute
  • Max Planck Bristol

Keywords

  • artificial cells
  • synthetic biology
  • DNA strand displacement circuits
  • molecular communication
  • microfluidics

Fingerprint

Dive into the research topics of 'Light-Activated Signaling in DNA-Encoded Sender–Receiver Architectures'. Together they form a unique fingerprint.

Cite this