Résumé
Aquaporins (AQPs) are biological water channels known for fast water transport, with complete ion exclusion. Artificial water channels (AWCs) have been designed to mimic the high water permeability and to reject ions at a significant level in bilayer membranes. This Review by M. Barboiu et al. on page 2224 discuss the incipient developments of the first biomimetic membranes and their water filtration performances using AWCs and natural strategies to implement new paradigms for desalination.