RNA and proteins are the foundation of life and a natural starting point to explore its origins.
amino acid
Posted inAway Teams & Field Reports, Biosignatures & Paleobiology, Extremeophiles and Extreme Environments, Genomics, Proteomics, Bioinformatics, Habitable Zones, Microbiology & Virology, Status Report
Adapting to UV: Integrative Genomic and Structural Analysis in Bacteria from Chilean Extreme Environments
Extremophilic bacteria from extreme environments, such as the Atacama Desert, Salar de Huasco, and Antarctica, exhibit adaptations to intense UV radiation. In this study, we investigated the genomic and structural […]
Posted inAstrochemistry, Astrogeology, Biochemistry & Organic Chemistry, Biogeochemical Cycles & Geobiology, Biosignatures & Paleobiology, Habitable Zones, Imaging & Spectroscopy, Meteorites & Asteroids, Origin & Evolution of Life, Panspermia, Press Release
Meteorite-common Amino Acid Induces Formation Of Nanocavities In Clay Mineral
Researchers at the universities of Amsterdam and Utrecht have observed the formation of nanocavities in montmorillonite clay under exposure to gamma-aminobutyric acid, a molecule commonly found on meteorites.
Posted inAstrochemistry, Astrogeology, Biochemistry & Organic Chemistry, Biogeochemical Cycles & Geobiology, Biosignatures & Paleobiology, Ceres, Comets and Asteroids, Imaging & Spectroscopy, Meteorites & Asteroids, Missions & Hardware, Sample Return, Status Report
Challenges and Opportunities in Using Amino Acids to Decode Carbonaceous Chondrite and Asteroid Parent Body Processes
Carbonaceous chondrite (CC) meteorites are fragments of planetesimals that hold clues about the early solar system’s organic matter. Amino acids are key to life on Earth; thus their study from […]
Posted inBiochemistry & Organic Chemistry, Biophysics, Biosignatures & Paleobiology, Genomics, Proteomics, Bioinformatics, Microbiology & Virology, Origin & Evolution of Life, Status Report
Structural Evolution Of Nitrogenase Enzymes Over Geologic Time
Life on Earth is more than 3.5 billion years old, nearly as old as the age of the planet. Over this vast expanse of time, life and its biomolecules adapted […]
Posted inAnalog Studies, Atmospheres, Climate, Weather, Biochemistry & Organic Chemistry, Biogeochemical Cycles & Geobiology, Biophysics, Biosignatures & Paleobiology, Cryobiology, Extremeophiles and Extreme Environments, Genomics, Proteomics, Bioinformatics, Habitable Zones, Icy Worlds, Microbiology & Virology, Microgravity, Missions & Hardware, Panspermia, Planetary Protection & Biosafety, Space Stations, Status Report, Tricorders & Sensors
ISS Astrobiology Research: Photochemical Evolution of Alanine in Association with the Martian Soil Analog Montmorillonite
The Photochemistry on the Space Station (PSS) experiment was part of the European Space Agency’s EXPOSE-R2 mission and was conducted on the International Space Station from 2014 to 2016. The […]
Posted inAstrochemistry, Astronomy & Telescopes, Biochemistry & Organic Chemistry, Biosignatures & Paleobiology, Imaging & Spectroscopy, Interstellar, Status Report
Evidence of the Amino Acids Tyrosine and Phenylalanine in the Interstellar Material of IC348 in Perseus
We employed data from the Spitzer Space Telescope to investigate the presence of the aromatic amino acids tyrosine and phenylalanine in the interstellar gas of the young star cluster IC […]
Posted inAstrochemistry, Astrogeology, Biosignatures & Paleobiology, Comets and Asteroids, Genomics, Proteomics, Bioinformatics, Missions & Hardware, Press Release
Life’s Building Blocks Discovered In Samples From Asteroid Bennu
Japanese collaborators detected all five nucleobases — building blocks of DNA and RNA — in samples returned from asteroid Bennu by NASA’s OSIRIS-REx mission.
Posted inAstrochemistry, Astrogeology, Biochemistry & Organic Chemistry, Biosignatures & Paleobiology, Comets and Asteroids, Habitable Zones, Icy Worlds, Imaging & Spectroscopy, Meteorites & Asteroids, Missions & Hardware, Planetary Protection & Biosafety, Press Release, Sample Return
Pristine Asteroid Samples Reveal Secrets Of The Ancient Solar System
Curtin University researchers have gained an unprecedented glimpse into the early history of our solar system through some of the most well-preserved asteroid samples ever collected, potentially transforming our understanding […]
Posted inAstrochemistry, Astrogeology, Biochemistry & Organic Chemistry, Biosignatures & Paleobiology, Comets and Asteroids, Habitable Zones, Icy Worlds, Imaging & Spectroscopy, Meteorites & Asteroids, Missions & Hardware, Planetary Protection & Biosafety, Press Release, Sample Return
Exploring The Mysteries Of Asteroid Bennu
During the past year, there’s been an unusual set of samples at the Department of Energy’s Lawrence Berkeley National Laboratory (Berkeley Lab): material gathered from the 4.5-billion-year-old asteroid Bennu when […]