Blasma

Blasma is a term used in speculative biology and science fiction to describe a hypothetical gel-like material that constitutes a major component of cellular interiors or extracellular matrices. It is not a widely recognized substance in mainstream biology, and there is no empirical evidence for its existence in real organisms.

In described concepts, blasma is envisioned as a viscoelastic, phase-separated medium that can form nanoscale compartments and interact with membranes. It is imagined to facilitate rapid diffusion or directed transport of metabolites and signaling molecules, and to reorganize in response to environmental cues. Some models assign it energy sources or dynamic restructuring abilities, allowing cellular components to reorganize without reliance on traditional membrane-bound organelles.

The concept serves as a thought experiment and worldbuilding tool to explore questions about cellular organization, the origin of life, and the design of artificial cells. It appears in various fictional settings and speculative models as a substitute or complement to cytoplasm, extracellular matrices, or membraneless organelles, providing a flexible framework for imagining how non-membrane-based compartmentalization might function.

Because blasma is not supported by experimental data, discussions about it remain theoretical and fictional. In real biology, researchers study related ideas such as cytosol dynamics, phase separation of biomolecular condensates, and gel-like intracellular media to understand how cells organize biochemistry without rigid membranes.

See also: cytoplasm, phase separation, biomolecular condensates, gel-like cytosol, protocell, synthetic biology.