Cell-free biology: exploiting the interface between synthetic biology and synthetic chemistry

Just as synthetic organic chemistry once revolutionized the ability of chemists to build molecules (including those that did not exist in nature) following a basic set of design rules, cell-free synthetic biology is beginning to provide an improved toolbox and faster process for not only harnessing but also expanding the chemistry of life. At the interface between chemistry and biology, research in cell-free synthetic systems is proceeding in two different directions: using synthetic biology for synthetic chemistry and using synthetic chemistry to reprogram or mimic biology. In the coming years, the impact of advances inspired by these approaches will make possible the synthesis of nonbiological polymers having new backbone compositions, new chemical properties, new structures, and new functions.

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► We focus this review on the role of cell-free systems in synthetic biology efforts.
► Cell-free biology is first examined along with its advantages.
► We then describe recent applications of exploiting the cell's protein synthesis machinery for synthetic chemistry.
► Finally, we consider how synthetic chemistry is used for cell-free synthetic biology.