Key points from article :
For over 200,000 years, human life has begun with a single cell that grows and organizes itself into the complex structure of a human being. Scientists at Tufts University are now exploring what happens when human cells are allowed to build something entirely different. By placing adult human cells in a novel environment, researchers Michael Levin and Gizem Gumuskaya created “Anthrobots”—tiny multicellular robots grown from human tracheal cells. These living constructs form unique shapes, move using hair-like structures called cilia, and even heal themselves.
What’s truly groundbreaking is what happens inside the Anthrobot cells. Freed from their normal biological roles, the cells undergo a massive reprogramming—changing the expression of nearly half of their genome without any genetic engineering. They reactivate ancient and embryonic genes that normally guide early development, like those for tissue layering and body symmetry. Intriguingly, the cells skip certain patterning genes, perhaps because Anthrobots are largely spherical and don’t need left-right symmetry.
Most astonishingly, the process of forming these new biological structures appears to reverse ageing at the cellular level. The team measured epigenetic age—based on chemical tags on DNA—and found that the Anthrobots were biologically 25% younger than the adult cells they were made from. This suggests that organizing into new shapes and functions can reset a cell’s internal clock without altering its DNA.
Levin proposes that cells interpret their new structure and behaviour as signs of early development, leading them to "adjust" their biological age. This insight may hold the key to future regenerative therapies—where tissues and organs could be rejuvenated, repaired, or even custom-grown from a person’s own cells. The research is still young, but the possibilities are remarkable.
