![Left. Two-dimensional UMAP representation of the TMC-1 inventory using the original ChemBERTa input vectors. Right. Same representation but using the last hidden layer of the neural netwok model. The red rectangle highlights the region of the UMAP representation where highly abundant molecules are located. The different dot sizes represent the observed column density of each molecule. -- [astro-ph.GA]](https://i0.wp.com/astrobiology.com/wp-content/uploads/2026/10/A-neural.png?resize=1200%2C725&ssl=1)
[astro-ph.GA] The detection of new interstellar molecules is central to astrochemistry, and arguably the most transformative development in the field in past decade has been the increase in both number […]
Biophysics
![A comparison of the dominant heating and cooling mechanism for different times and at the time of the maximum temperature. Each model is started at 𝑇 = 10 K. -- [astro-ph.GA]](https://i0.wp.com/astrobiology.com/wp-content/uploads/2026/10/UCLCHEM.png?resize=1200%2C716&ssl=1)
Posted inAstrochemistry
UCLCHEM 4.0: An Open Source Gas-grain Astrochemistry Simulation Framework
[astro-ph.GA] Astrochemical modeling is a key tool for the understanding of the formation and destruction of molecules in the dense gas of the interstellar medium, as observed by modern day […]
Posted inExtremeophiles and Extreme Environments
Novel Antarctic Chemolithotroph Drives Iron Biomineralization
[Microbiome] Background: Iron, the most abundant redox-active metal in the Earth’s crust, is coupled to numerous biogeochemi- cal cycles. However, the mechanisms of iron oxidation and the organisms involved remain […]
Posted inGenomics, Proteomics, Bioinformatics
UV Photodamage Pathways And The Evolutionary Selection Of Thymine Over Uracil In Early Genetic Systems
[PNAS] The evolutionary selection of thymine over uracil in DNA presents a paradox from a photostability perspective, since thymine is found to be more susceptible to photodamage from the intense […]
Posted inBiophysics
Reversion To The Meta Body Form Of Life After Complete Cell Death In Pure Liquid Water
[biorxiv.org] The prevailing view holds that simpler animate beings predating the dawn of cellular life once existed, yet they have long since vanished from the present-day Earth. Our hypothesis posits […]
Posted inCryobiology
How High-pressure Ices On Large Ocean Worlds Can Support Habitability: The Compatibility Of Amino Acids Into Ice VI And VII
[Science Advances] Water oceans in large icy moons and exoplanets are isolated from the rocky interior by thick layers of high-pressure ice, which hinder the direct release of nutrients and […]
Posted inCryobiology
Ice Drives The Emergence Of Functional Protocells
[biorxiv.org] A defining feature of living systems is the high local concentration of diverse molecular components within membrane-bounded compartments.
Posted inAstrochemistry
How Fluctuations Control Chiral Symmetry Breaking in Reacting Mixtures of Chiral Molecules
[cond-mat.soft] The pronounced chiral asymmetry of biomolecules is a defining feature of living systems, yet the mechanisms by which such asymmetry emerged remain unresolved. Chiral symmetry breaking may have occurred […]
Posted inAstrochemistry
Intimate Link Between Prebiotic Chemistry And Meteorites: Mechanisms Of Organic Molecule Formation
[Astrobiology (Journal) via PubMed] Whether meteorites brought ingredients necessary for the origin of life exogenously or they were produced endogenously on early Earth, having a prebiotic chemical inventory of organic […]
Posted inOrigin & Evolution of Life
Beyond The Prebiotic Soup: Solid Organic Films And Protocell-Like Formation in Prebiotic Discharge Experiments
[Astrobiology (Journal) via PubMed] The original Miller-Urey experiment demonstrated the abiotic synthesis of organic compounds under early Earth conditions, yet the physicochemical properties and internal organization of the associated insoluble […]