AI-designed (C-shaped) organisms push loose stem cells (white) into piles as they move through their environment. Credit: Douglas Blackiston and Sam Kriegman
Scientists who produced the first “living robots” say the life forms have found a way to reproduce.
The blob-like xenobots, which are less than a millimetre wide, were formed from the stem cells of the African clawed frog - xenopus laevis - from which they take their name.
They were first unveiled in 2020 after experiments showed they could move, work in groups and even heal themselves.
Now the US scientists who developed them say the xenobots have discovered an entirely new form of biological reproduction, different from any animal or plant known to science.
"I was astounded by it," said Michael Levin, a professor of biology and director of the Allen Discovery Centre at Tufts University, who was co-lead author of the new research.
"Frogs have a way of reproducing that they normally use but when you liberate (the cells) from the rest of the embryo and you give them a chance to figure out how to be in a new environment, not only do they figure out a new way to move, but they also figure out apparently a new way to reproduce." The National News - link - TNN muck rack - link - more like this - link
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