Uploaded March 2026 | Updated September 2026, 3 hours ago
Researchers from the Physical Intelligence Department at the Max Planck Institute for Intelligent Systems have developed a new strategy to breathe life into synthetic cells. They utilized Giant Unilamellar Vesicles (GUVs) -soft compartments made of phospholipid molecules that mimic natural cell membranes. While GUVs are ideal models for synthetic cells, making these passive structures motile has always been a significant challenge. By integrating them with microparticles under electric fields, the team achieved emergent self-propulsion. Furthermore, they demonstrated on-demand bursting for controlled cargo release by simply tuning the field parameters. Creating such adaptive, soft robots is a big challenge in robotics, but as seen in the side-by-side comparison with a human neutrophil pursuing bacteria, these synthetic assemblies successfully mirror the sophisticated motility of biological life.
Find out more: is.mpg.de/news/blog-from-passive-vesicles-to-cell-like-microrobots
Read the paper: advanced.onlinelibrary.wiley.com/toc/15214095/2026/38/12
Researchers from the Physical Intelligence Department at the Max Planck Institute for Intelligent Systems have developed a new strategy to breathe life into synthetic cells. They utilized Giant Unilamellar Vesicles (GUVs) -soft compartments made of phospholipid molecules that mimic natural cell membranes. While GUVs are ideal models for synthetic cells, making these passive structures motile has always been a significant challenge. By integrating them with microparticles under electric fields, the team achieved emergent self-propulsion. Furthermore, they demonstrated on-demand bursting for controlled cargo release by simply tuning the field parameters. Creating such adaptive, soft robots is a big challenge in robotics, but as seen in the side-by-side comparison with a human neutrophil pursuing bacteria, these synthetic assemblies successfully mirror the sophisticated motility of biological life.
Find out more: is.mpg.de/news/blog-from-passive-vesicles-to-cell-like-microrobots
Read the paper: advanced.onlinelibrary.wiley.com/toc/15214095/2026/38/12
