Synthetic Morphogenesis: Introducing IEEE Journal Readers to Programming Living Mammalian Cells to Make Structures

Synthetic morphogenesis is a new engineering discipline, in which cells are genetically engineered to make designed shapes and structures. At least in this early phase of the field, devices tend to make use of natural shape-generating processes that operate in embryonic development but invoke them artificially at times and in orders of a technologist’s choosing. This requires the construction of genetic control, sequencing, and feedback systems that have close parallels to electronic design, which is one reason the field may be of interest to readers of IEEE journals. The other reason is that synthetic morphogenesis allows the construction of two-way interfaces, especially optogenetic and optoelectronic, between the living and the electronic, allowing unprecedented information flow and control between the two types of “machines.” This review introduces synthetic morphogenesis, illustrates what has been achieved, drawing parallels wherever possible between biology and electronics, and looks forward to likely next steps and challenges to be overcome.