This research presents an artificial platform that leverages stochasticity to control the motility of artificial cells. Enzymes, when confined to the fluidic polymer membrane of core-shell coacervates, exhibit stochastic spatial and temporal distribution. This asymmetry in the distribution of propulsive units imparts motility to the coacervates in the presence of substrate. The mechanism was confirmed through stochastic modeling and simulations. Furthermore, the study demonstrates how a deeper understanding of stochasticity can be used to modulate the motion output, representing a significant advancement in designing synthetic systems with life-like behaviors.

Shidong Song, Alexander F. Mason, Richard A. J. Post, Marco De Corato, Rafael Mestre, N. Amy Yewdall, Shoupeng Cao, Remco W. van der Hofstad, Samuel Sanchez, Loai K. E. A. Abdelmohsen, Jan C. M. van Hest