Synthetic cells have passed the Turing test

Artificial cells deceived bacteria by posing as real ones

Evgenia Efimova, Vesti

Recently, researchers from Italy coped with a kind of microscopic version of the Turing test, creating artificial cells so realistic that ordinary "colleagues" could not notice the difference during a chemical "conversation".

Let's explain that the Turing test, developed in the 1950s by the famous mathematician Alan Turing, is designed to determine whether a computer can think. Simply put: if one day, a machine can deceive a person who thinks that he was talking to his own kind, then this will mean that a real artificial intelligence has appeared in the world (to which many are still only striving).

But back to the study: artificial cells were able to "fool" real cells, because they behaved like living ones. Such a breakthrough could potentially be useful in creating completely new methods of treating diseases, especially microbial infections. Doctors could use artificial cells to interact with ordinary organic cells, which ultimately will help directly influence the behavior of bacteria in the body, which are also cells.

A research group led by Sheref S. Mansy from the Italian University of Trento has developed artificial cells in the laboratory. They created tiny structures resembling cells and packed their own DNA "instructions" into them, and then placed them next to living bacteria of three different species: Vibrio fischeri, Pseudomonas aeruginosa and Escherichia coli.

The proximity to live bacteria forced artificial cells to start producing special proteins. The event can already be called unique, since such a process suggests that artificial cells "listened" to bacteria.

Then the specialists changed the scenario and "presented" the artificial cells with the opportunity to "talk" themselves. The process of two-way communication between pathogenic microorganisms and artificial cells has already begun here.

"We absolutely can create artificial cells that are able to interact chemically with bacteria. Artificial cells can perceive molecules that are naturally secreted from bacteria, and in response synthesize and release chemical signals back," says Mansi.

A new kind of "cell diplomacy" may lead to the creation of a therapy in which artificial cells and natural cells work together. Artificial cells can also be useful in converting chemical signals in other organic systems.

"Laboratory cells do a pretty good job of imitating natural cellular life, they can be designed in such a way as to set up communication channels between organisms that by their nature do not "talk" to each other," Mansi notes.

In other words, potentially artificial cells could influence cellular processes that lead to bacterial infections. The latter can be extremely dangerous for humans.

But in the end it all depends on how natural cells will accept artificial "brothers". And that's where the Turing test comes in. By tracking the exchange of chemicals, scientists have shown that artificial cells can actually cope with a laboratory Turing test.

The results of the study are published in the scientific publication ACS Central Science (Lentini et al., Two-Way Chemical Communication between Artificial and Natural Cells).

Portal "Eternal youth" http://vechnayamolodost.ru  31.01.2017