Emergence and Evolution of Complex Chemical Systems Is a Network Comprising More Than 90 European Research Groups

• COST Action CM1304 - Emergence and Evolution of Complex Chemical Systems is a network comprising more than 90 European research groups. It has sparked invaluable collaborations that have helped advance the emerging field of systems chemistry Systems Chemistry The next big frontier Professor Sijbren Otto introduces us to systems chemistry, explaining why this field is so important and highlighting the role of his work on the emergence and evolution of chemical systems in addressing some of society’s major scientific challenges Could you briefly simply too difficult to study mixtures of It is still early days in the field and predicting introduce the molecules. However, with the recent rapid concrete applications is notoriously field of systems development in analytical equipment this difficult. Yet I am convinced that, given the chemistry? situation has now changed. Also, mixtures of fundamentally new approach to chemistry, molecules have become tractable, opening such applications will emerge. The most The field of systems up the new discipline of systems chemistry. likely will be in the interface with life. As chemistry deals a significant part of systems chemistry is with complex chemical systems that show Can you discuss the advantages and about making chemical systems that operate properties that go beyond the sum of its disadvantages of employing a bottom-up based on the organisational principles of components. Such emergent properties are approach within systems chemistry research? living systems, their interfacing with living commonly found in systems that have many systems is likely to be more efficient than the components that interact with each other. For The bottom-up strategy is second nature to rather blunt approach taken in, for example, example, the dynamics and characteristics of chemists, who are used to building bigger pharmaceutics, that relies on drugs with a a society come about from the interactions systems from smaller components. In single active component. But even now, while between many different people. The field of synthetic chemistry the approach is already much groundwork still needs to be done, we systems chemistry is currently occupied with to join atoms into molecules and smaller are already seeing systems emerging that learning the rules that will enable the design molecules into larger ones. Thus, chemists come close to having applications. Examples of chemical systems with specific properties will take a bottom-up approach almost from our Action include the development of in the near future. It represents the next big without thinking. Top-down construction self-synthesising hydrogels for tissue-culture frontier in the chemical sciences. of complex chemical systems is of course applications and the assembly of organic also possible, as evident from the field of molecules into structures that conduct When compared to certain other disciplines, synthetic biology, where the approach is to electricity with an efficiency similar to metals. why is complexity science relatively take existing biology and modify it to suit new underdeveloped in chemistry? purposes. However, the bottom-up Systems Speaking more broadly, systems chemistry Chemistry approach is the only one that will is the area of science that is best placed The reason for this is mostly practical. allow completely new systems to be built and to address two of the grand scientific The components of chemical systems the only approach that may illuminate the challenges: the origin of life and the de novo (molecules) are much smaller than the origin of life and that would allow for the de synthesis of life. Addressing these will have components studied in sociology (humans), novo synthesis of life. huge implications for science and for society. biology (organisms) and most of physics. Due to their small size, molecules are much What are some of the potential applications harder to study. For most of the history of that may emerge from your COST Action chemistry, the focus has been on studying CM1304 (Emergence and Evolution of pure substances. Until very recently, it was Complex Chemical Systems)? www.impact.pub 57 A new paradigm COST Action CM1304 - Emergence and Evolution of Complex Chemical Systems is developing far-from-equilibrium self-assembly and self-replicating systems, self-assembling and reproducing compartments, and the use of information-rich molecules in these contexts Systems chemistry is a rather young field to shaping the community.’ now switching from the development of the that has so far had little attention dedicated theory to real-world applications.’ to it. However, with complexity becoming Collaboration is crucial to shedding light on The Action brings together more than 90 increasingly important in chemistry, the field systems chemistry, as Pascal highlights. ‘The European research groups focusing on is extremely vital. Researchers in this topic establishment of a community of scientists systems chemistry and is divided into four have long recognised this, and one COST through three different COST actions over WGs. Jan van Esch is coordinating WG1 Action in particular is striving to establish a time span of 15 years has been highly which is establishing the methodology for Europe as a world leader in this area. beneficial to the development of this field of self-assembly far from equilibrium, which science,’ he states. ‘This has not only been requires the supramolecular and far-from- COST Action CM1304, ‘Emergence and made possible through the realisation of equilibrium communities collaborating. Evolution of Complex Chemical Systems’, collaborative investigations (through short- WG2, coordinated by Nicolas Giuseppone, has brought together a vibrant and coherent term scientific missions, for instance) but is developing a new class of materials research community in the field of systems also because it has allowed the distribution that are self-synthesising, responsive and chemistry in Europe that is connected of concepts in the community and favoured potentially self-repairing, which will involve through the COST network. Professor Otto their acceptance as new paradigms for the combining the autocatalytic systems explored Sijbren, from the University of Groningen, foundation of a new field of science.’ by the origin-of-life community with the Netherlands, is Chair of the Action and self-assembly principles of supramolecular works alongside Vice Chair Professor A WORLD LEADER chemistry. This group is also developing Gonen Ashkenasy, Science Officer Dr In order to establish Europe as a world leader synthetic self-replicating systems capable of Lucia Forzi and a number of key partners in the emerging area of systems chemistry, undergoing Darwinian evolution, requiring including Professors Jan van Esch, Nicolas this Action is bringing together communities input from researchers from the origin-of-life Giuseppone, Peter Walde and Robert Pascal working on supramolecular chemistry, far- and the far-from-equilibrium communities. as working group leaders and Drs Annette from-equilibrium systems and the origin of Taylor and Kepa Ruiz-Mirazo in charge of life. The key goals are to develop far-from- WG3, coordinated by Peter Walde, focuses dissemination and scientific exchanges, equilibrium self-assembly and self-replicating on developing methodology for the respectively. systems, self-assembling and reproducing compartmentalisation of chemical systems compartments, and the use of information- to achieve a direct coupling between Their four year programme of work began in rich molecules, which the researchers are chemical reactions, energy harvesting and December 2013 and is the third in a series aware necessitates a multidisciplinary transport and membrane dynamic, while of Actions. ‘The first Action on prebiotic approach. ‘The term ‘complexity’ is typically WG4, coordinated by Robert Pascal, looks chemistry and early evolution was initiated used to describe situations where the at developing synthetic, information-rich by Pier Luigi Luisi, followed by an Action on behaviour of the whole (system) cannot molecules or assemblies that have the Systems Chemistry, initiated by Günter von be predicted from the individual parts. potential of being replicated in a purely Kiedrowski,’ explains Sijbren. ‘Through these This area of research crosses traditional chemical system. Actions considerable momentum on systems discipline boundaries and new centres of chemistry had already gathered, yet much excellence have emerged across Europe CHALLENGES AND SUCCESSES work still remained to be done, both with bringing together researchers from diverse Challenges faced by this Action have involved respect to developing the science as well as backgrounds,’ explains Taylor. ‘The focus is the integration of different fields, which is 58 www.impact.pub an ongoing challenge for systems chemistry. However, the network has seen success in doing so. ‘The grand future challenge will be to connect the area of systems chemistry to biology, physics and social sciences to get a full perspective on complexity and emerging behaviour. It is evident though that this first requires a solid aggregation of chemists around the theme of systems chemistry,’ Prins says. ‘The COST CM1304 has been very successful in doing that by assembling a large group of scientists with entirely different backgrounds but with a common interest in systems chemistry. Considering the intrinsic multiple facets of this emerging research area it is of fundamental importance to connect

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