Oil droplets remodel themselves, swallow their surroundings like living cells
NYU researchers discovered that microscopic oil droplets can mimic the complex shape-shifting behaviors of living cells using only simple chemistry. This finding suggests that morphogenesis can occur without biological machinery.
Why it matters
This research provides new insights into the origins of life and potential applications for synthetic materials and drug delivery.
edited by Gaby Clark , reviewed by Andrew Zinin
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Add as preferred source Microscopic oil droplets change shape simply by being exposed to a soap-like molecule, eventually closing into a sealed capsule that traps a bit of the surrounding liquid and suspended particles. Credit: Florent Fessler, NYU NYU researchers have made microscopic oil droplets in water do something usually reserved for living cells: change shape in complex, controllable ways and even engulf their surroundings.
The findings, published in Nature Communications , show that some of life's signature behaviors—like morphing into complex shapes and capturing material—can emerge from physics and chemistry alone, without genes, proteins or active cellular machinery.
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