Generation of chemobrionic jellyfishes that mechanically divide, grow and exhibit biomimetic “symbiosis”

Addition of CaCl2 in a highly alkaline phosphate buffer results in the generation of submerged transparent chemobrionic bubbles mimicking jellyfishes that are stable and malleable. A compartmentalized O2-generating reaction triggered the growth of regular vertical chemical gardens from the bubble through a gas micro-rocket propelled mechanism. The bubbles can mechanically separate to yield two daughter bubbles in a process reminiscent of cytokinesis or natural jellyfish regeneration, and then re-grow through new injection of CaCl2. Finally, loading of E. coli bacteria genetically engineered to exert green fluorescence inside the bubbles was demonstrated in a biomimetic analog of “symbiosis”.