![Recombination transferred part of archaeal YRS into non-canonical bacterial YRS. A) YRS core catalytic domain alignment from archaeal (indicated left as blue), bacterial non-canonical (purple) and bacterial canonical (pink) sequences. Both recombinant and nonrecombinant YRSs are found within all four major bacterial supergroups (Terrabacteria, Proteobacteria, PVC and FCB) B) Speciestree reconciled consensus trees reconstructed for the non-recombinant (left) and recombinant YRS sites (right). Branch lengths were estimated using NQ.bac+R10 in IQ-Tree v2.1.332. -- [biorxiv.org]](https://i0.wp.com/astrobiology.com/wp-content/uploads/2026/07/Tryptophan-became.png?resize=1200%2C720&ssl=1)
[biorxiv.org] We evaluate whether tryptophan (W), widely thought to be the last of the 20 canonical amino acids added to the genetic code, was already present in the Last Universal […]
Archae
Posted inMicrobiology & Virology, Press Release
Study of Archaeal Cells Could Teach Us More About Ourselves
Forty-two years after Carl Woese defined archaea as the third domain of life, scientists at the Carl R. Woese Institute for Genomic Biology (IGB) at the University of Illinois at […]
Posted inBiochemistry & Organic Chemistry, Commercial & Private Sector, Extremeophiles and Extreme Environments, Lava / magma ocean / Volcanic Worlds, Microbiology & Virology, Nanotechnology & SynBio, Press Release, ROVs/Submersibles/Diving, Sample Return
Extremophiles: Untapped Source of Antibacterial Drugs
One of the most mysterious forms of life may turn out to be a rich and untapped source of antibacterial drugs.