Predator鈥揚rey Molecular Ecosystems
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- 作者：Teruo Fujii ; Yannick Rondelez
- 刊名：ACS Nano
- 出版年：2013
- 出版时间：January 22, 2013
- 年：2013
- 卷：7
- 期：1
- 页码：27-34
- 全文大小：963K
- 年卷期：v.7,no.1(January 22, 2013)
- ISSN：1936-086X
文摘
Biological organisms use intricate networks of chemical reactions to control molecular processes and spatiotemporal organization. In turn, these living systems are embedded in self-organized structures of larger scales, for example, ecosystems. Synthetic in vitro efforts have reproduced the architectures and behaviors of simple cellular circuits. However, because all these systems share the same dynamic foundations, a generalized molecular programming strategy should also support complex collective behaviors, as seen, for example, in animal populations. We report here the bottom-up assembly of chemical systems that reproduce in vitro the specific dynamics of ecological communities. We experimentally observed unprecedented molecular behaviors, including predator鈥損rey oscillations, competition-induced chaos, and symbiotic synchronization. These synthetic systems are tailored through a novel, compact, and versatile design strategy, leveraging the programmability of DNA interactions under the precise control of enzymatic catalysis. Such self-organizing assemblies will foster a better appreciation of the molecular origins of biological complexity and may also serve to orchestrate complex collective operations of molecular agents in technological applications.