A major goal of synthetic biology is to understand the transition between non-living matter and life. The bottom-up development of an artificial cell would provide a minimal system with which to study the border between chemistry and biology. So far, a fully synthetic cell has remained elusive, but chemists are progressing towards this goal by reconstructing cellular subsystems. Cell boundaries, likely in the form of lipid membranes, were necessary for the emergence of life. In addition to providing a protective barrier between cellular cargo and the external environment, lipid compartments maintain homeostasis with other subsystems to regulate cellular processes. In this Review, we examine different chemical approaches to making cell-mimetic compartments. Synthetic strategies to drive membrane formation and function, including bioorthogonal ligations, dissipative self-assembly and reconstitution of biochemical pathways, are discussed. Chemical strategies aim to recreate the interactions between lipid membranes, the external environment and internal biomolecules, and will clarify our understanding of life at the interface of chemistry and biology.

合成生物学的一个主要目标是了解非生命物质与生命之间的转变。人造细胞的自下而上的发展将提供一个最小的系统来研究化学和生物学之间的边界。到目前为止，完全合成的细胞仍然难以捉摸，但化学家正在通过重建细胞子系统朝着这个目标前进。细胞边界，可能以脂质膜的形式存在，是生命出现所必需的。除了在细胞货物和外部环境之间提供保护屏障外，脂质隔室还与其他子系统保持稳态以调节细胞过程。在这篇综述中，我们研究了制造细胞模拟隔室的不同化学方法。驱动膜形成和功能的合成策略，讨论了包括生物正交连接、耗散自组装和生化途径的重建。化学策略旨在重建脂质膜、外部环境和内部生物分子之间的相互作用，并将阐明我们在化学和生物学的界面上对生命的理解。