One-liner
Michael Levin discusses the remarkable plasticity of biological organisms in repairing and reshaping their anatomical form, demonstrating how manipulating bioelectric patterns can lead to controlled regeneration and the creation of novel organisms without genetic modification.
Key insights
Evolution and Multi-Scale Competency Architecture
Levin outlines how evolution has developed a multilayered system where DNA provides the hardware and a "software level" of cellular activity allows organisms to solve complex problems, including adaptation to new environments.
Developmental Bioelectricity
A key theme is developmental bioelectricity, the cognitive 'glue' that orchestrates collective cellular activity towards complex anatomical outcomes. Levin's team developed techniques to 'read' and 'write' these bioelectric patterns, allowing them to control morphology—such as entire body shapes and organ functions—without changing the underlying genetics.
Regeneration and Homeostasis
He provides examples of dynamic anatomical homeostasis and intelligence in cellular collectives, such as the regenerative capabilities of axolotls (which can regrow limbs) and the adaptability of embryonic cells (which can retool their communication networks to maintain correct organ shapes and sizes).
Bioelectrical Networks and Memory
Cells use electrical signals not only to communicate but also to store 'memories' of what structures to build when repairing or growing. By manipulating these electrical patterns, Levin's team was able to create two-headed worms or induce non-regenerating species to regrow limbs, illustrating a form of memory in cellular networks that surpasses genetic constraints.
Xenobots: Synthetic Proto-Organisms
Levin introduces xenobots, a new class of bioengineered 'proto-organisms' made from frog skin cells that behave entirely differently from the original organism. These xenobots organize themselves into novel structures and exhibit unique behaviors, raising profound questions about the potential of cellular collectives when freed from their traditional biological roles.
Key quotes
- "Dynamic robust anatomical homeostasis is a kind of intelligent behavior of a cellular collective."
- "Developmental bioelectricity is one important cognitive glue that harnesses cells towards large scale anatomical outcomes."
- "The actual outcome is not in the genetics of what's happening to the genome of the cell; it's actually in the physiology of what that cell is going to be connected to and what that network is trying to do."
- "Cells that are taken away from their normal instructive microenvironments can reboot their multicellularity."
Make it stick
- "Developmental bioelectricity" can be thought of as the software programming that instructs cells in what complex anatomical structures to build.
- Xenobots represent a "biological reboot," showing that skin cells have the potential to self-organize into entirely novel, functional organisms when not constrained by their preset role in the body.
- Just like creating a "Save Point" in a video game, cells can establish "bioelectric memories" that serve as blueprints for regeneration, sometimes diverging significantly from the original organism's shape.
- Levin's work affirms the principle: "DNA isn't destiny." It suggests that bioelectric patterns act as a tunable layer of biological influence, which, when modified, can lead to dramatic changes in an organism's form and function.
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