Chemically Triggered Reactive Coacervates Show Life-Like Budding and Membrane Formation

Phase-separated coacervates
can enhance reaction kinetics and guide
multilevel self-assembly, mimicking early cellular evolution. In this
work, we introduce “reactive” complex coacervates that
undergo chemically triggered self-immolative transformations, directing
the self-assembly of the reaction products within their matrix. These
self-assemblies then evolve to show life-like properties such as budding
and membrane formation. We find that the coacervate composition critically
influences reaction rates and product distribution and guides the
hierarchical self-assembly. This work showcases “reactive”
coacervates as a versatile platform to influence reaction and self-assembly
pathways for controlled supramolecular synthesis and hierarchical
self-organization in confined spaces.