title: 2- and 3-dimensional synthetic large-scale de novo patterning by mammalian cells through phase separation.
abstract: Synthetic biology provides an opportunity for the construction and exploration of alternative solutions to biological problems - solutions different from those chosen by natural life. To this end, synthetic biologists have built new sensory systems, cellular memories, and alternative genetic codes. There is a growing interest in applying synthetic approaches to multicellular systems, especially in relation to multicellular self-organization. Here we describe a synthetic biological system that confers large-scale de novo patterning activity on 2-D and 3-D populations of mammalian cells. Instead of using the reaction-diffusion mechanisms common in real embryos, our system uses cadherin-mediated phase separation, inspired by the known phenomenon of cadherin-based sorting. An engineered self-organizing, large-scale patterning system requiring no prior spatial cue may be a significant step towards the construction of self-assembling synthetic tissues.
authors: Centre for Integrative Physiology &Synthsys Centre for Synthetic &Systems Biology, University of Edinburgh, George Square, Edinburgh EH8 9XB, UK.
authors: Elise
authors: E
authors: Cachat
authors: Centre for Integrative Physiology &Synthsys Centre for Synthetic &Systems Biology, University of Edinburgh, George Square, Edinburgh EH8 9XB, UK.
authors: Weijia
authors: W
authors: Liu
authors: Centre for Integrative Physiology &Synthsys Centre for Synthetic &Systems Biology, University of Edinburgh, George Square, Edinburgh EH8 9XB, UK.
authors: Kim C
authors: KC
authors: Martin
authors: School of Engineering, University of Glasgow, Rankine Building, Oakfield Avenue, Glasgow G12 8LT, UK.
authors: Xiaofei
authors: X
authors: Yuan
authors: School of Engineering, University of Glasgow, Rankine Building, Oakfield Avenue, Glasgow G12 8LT, UK.
authors: Huabing
authors: H
authors: Yin
authors: The Roslin Institute, University of Edinburgh, Easter Bush Campus, Midlothian, EH25 9RG, UK.
authors: Peter
authors: P
authors: Hohenstein
authors: Centre for Integrative Physiology &Synthsys Centre for Synthetic &Systems Biology, University of Edinburgh, George Square, Edinburgh EH8 9XB, UK.
authors: Jamie A
authors: JA
authors: Davies
mesh_terms: D000818:Animals; D015820:Cadherins / Q000737:chemistry*; D018929:Cell Culture Techniques; D002460:Cell Line; D002469:Cell Separation / Q000379:methods*; D006801:Humans; D051379:Mice; D058615:Synthetic Biology / Q000379:methods*
chemical_list: D015820:Cadherins