Artificial Cells for Cellular Behavior Mimicry Induced by Sphingomyelin Degradation

Sphingomyelinase (SMase), a hydrolase of sphingomyelin(SM) enrichedin the outer leaflet of the plasma membrane of mammalian cells, isclosely associated with the onset and development of many diseases,but the specific mechanisms of SMase on the cell structure, function,and behavior are not yet fully understood due to the complexity ofthe cell structure. Artificial cells are minimal biological systemsconstructed from various molecular components designed to mimic cellularprocesses, behaviors, and structures, which are excellent models forstudying biochemical reactions and dynamic changes in cell membranes.In this work, we presented an artificial cell model that mimics thelipid composition and content of the outer leaflet of mammalian plasmamembranes for studying the effect of SMase on cell behavior. The resultsconfirmed that the artificial cells can respond to SM degradationby producing ceramides that enrich and alter the membrane charge andpermeability, thus inducing the budding and fission of the artificialcells. Thus, the artificial cells developed here provide a powerfultool to study the mechanism of action of cell membrane lipids on cellbiological behavior, paving the way for further molecular mechanismstudies.