Liquid–liquid phase separation and related phase transitions have emerged as generic
mechanisms in living cells for the formation of membraneless compartments or biomolecular …

In active matter systems, individual constituents convert energy into non-conservative forces
or motion at the microscale, leading to morphological features and transport properties that …

The fascinating patterns of collective motion created by autonomously driven particles have
fuelled active-matter research for over two decades. So far, theoretical active-matter …

Animal morphogenesis arises from the complex interplay between multiple mechanical and
biochemical processes with mutual feedback. Develo** an effective, coarse-grained …

Liquid crystals (LCs) are ubiquitous in display technologies. The orientational ordering in the
nematic phase of LCs gives rise to structural anisotropy, the ability to form topological …

Recent developments in synthetic biology may bring the bottom-up generation of a synthetic
cell within reach. A key feature of a living synthetic cell is a functional cell cycle, in which …

Living and proliferating cells undergo repeated cycles of growth, replication and division, all
orchestrated by complex molecular networks. How a minimal cell cycle emerged and helped …

A key event at the onset of development is the activation of a contractile actomyosin cortex
during the oocyte-to-embryo transition,–. Here we report on the discovery that, in …

The bottom-up construction of a living cell using non-living materials represents a grand
challenge in science and technology. Reproduction of cells into similar offspring is key to …

Active matter composed of self-propelled interacting units holds a major promise for the
extraction of useful work from its seemingly chaotic dynamics. Streamlining active matter is …