Ice-nucleating proteins (INpros) catalyze ice formation at high subzero temperatures, with major biological and environmental implications.
biophysics
Posted inBiochemistry & Organic Chemistry, Biophysics, Biosignatures & Paleobiology, Genomics, Proteomics, Bioinformatics, Nanotechnology & SynBio, Status Report
Compositional Memory Matters For Early Molecular Systems
The error catastrophe refers to the proliferation of non-functional molecules in conditions where molecular replication has low accuracy, which is likely to correspond to conditions present at the Origin of […]
Posted inAI - Data - Apps - Cybernetics, Biochemistry & Organic Chemistry, Biophysics, Biosignatures & Paleobiology, Genomics, Proteomics, Bioinformatics, Origin & Evolution of Life, Status Report
Template-Based Catalysis and the Emergence of Collectively Autocatalytic SystemsEntropy
Mathematical and computational models, which have been successfully used in various fields of biology, are particularly relevant in studies on the origin of life, where wet experiments have not yet […]
Posted inAstropharmacy / Biotechnology, Biochemistry & Organic Chemistry, Biophysics, Biosignatures & Paleobiology, Genomics, Proteomics, Bioinformatics, Nanotechnology & SynBio, Press Release
Scientists Form Complex DNA Structures Without Hydrogen Bond
No “sticky ends”? No problem. A new study by NYU chemists finds that DNA tiles can assemble into 3D structures without the sticky cohesion of hydrogen bonding. This finding, published […]
Posted inAnalog Studies, Arctic / Antarctic / Alpine, Biophysics, Biosignatures & Paleobiology, Cryobiology, Europa, Extremeophiles and Extreme Environments, Genomics, Proteomics, Bioinformatics, Habitable Zones, Icy Worlds, Microbiology & Virology, Press Release, Water/Hycean Worlds & Oceanography
Microbes From Ambient-pressure Analogues Offer Insights Into Possible Life In Europa’s High-pressure Subsurface Ocean
Under its thick ice layer, Europa contains a shielded liquid water ocean where habitable conditions may exist. To effectively assess the habitability of this environment and the implications on putative […]
Posted inBiochemistry & Organic Chemistry, Biophysics, Biosignatures & Paleobiology, Genomics, Proteomics, Bioinformatics, Meteorites & Asteroids, Origin & Evolution of Life, Press Release, Sample Return
Stringent Selection On Kinetics Of Condensation Reactions: Early Steps In Chemical Evolution
The emergence of chemical selectivity poses a central challenge in origins-of-life research. As demonstrated by analyses of asteroid and meteorite samples, abiotic chemistry is incredibly messy.
![Simulation results of abundance ratios [H2O2]/[H2O] (black lines), [H2]/[H2O] (orange lines), and [O2]/[H2O] (blue lines) with our model (model A) at 16 K (solid lines) and 77 K (dashed lines). The gray shaded and line filled regions show the experimental results of [H2O2]/[H2O] by Gomis et al. (2004a) at 16 and 77 K, respectively, with an assumed uncertainty of a factor of 3. -- astro-ph.GA](https://i0.wp.com/astrobiology.com/wp-content/uploads/2026/02/Simulation-of-proton-radiolysis.png?resize=1200%2C719&ssl=1)
Posted inAI - Data - Apps - Cybernetics, Astrochemistry, Astrogeology, Astronomy & Telescopes, Biochemistry & Organic Chemistry, Biophysics, Biosignatures & Paleobiology, Icy Worlds, Imaging & Spectroscopy, Interstellar, Status Report
Simulation Of Proton Radiolysis Of H2O And O2 Ices With The Nautilus Code
The radiolysis effect of cosmic rays (CRs) plays an important role in the chemistry in molecular clouds. CRs can dissociate the molecules on dust grains, producing reactive suprathermal species and […]
Posted inBiogeochemical Cycles & Geobiology, Biophysics, Biosignatures & Paleobiology, Extremeophiles and Extreme Environments, Genomics, Proteomics, Bioinformatics, Habitable Zones, Microbiology & Virology, Press Release, Water/Hycean Worlds & Oceanography
One Of Earth’s Most Abundant Organisms Is Surprisingly Fragile
A group of ocean bacteria long considered perfectly adapted to life in nutrient-poor waters may be more vulnerable to environmental change than scientists realized.
Posted inAstrochemistry, Biochemistry & Organic Chemistry, Biophysics, Interstellar, Panspermia, Press Release, Space Weather & Heliophysics
Stardust Study Resets How Life’s Atoms Spread Through Space
Starlight and stardust are not enough to drive the powerful winds of giant stars, transporting the building blocks of life through our galaxy. That’s the conclusion of a new study […]
Posted inAnalog Studies, Arctic / Antarctic / Alpine, Away Teams & Field Reports, Biophysics, Biosignatures & Paleobiology, Cryobiology, Extremeophiles and Extreme Environments, Habitable Zones, Microbiology & Virology, Sample Return, Status Report
Cytoplasmic Fluidity And The Cold Life: Proteome Stability Is Decoupled From Viability In Psychrophiles
Protein diffusion, critical for cellular metabolism, occurs in the highly crowded cytoplasm. Understanding how this dynamics changes when organisms are adapted to different thermal niches is a fundamental challenge in […]