A nitrogen-fixing bacterial endosymbiont of marine algae is evolving into a nitrogen-fixing organelle, or nitroplast, according to a new study, thereby expanding a function that was thought to be exclusively […]
evolution
Posted inGenomics, Proteomics, Bioinformatics, Microbiology & Virology, Origin & Evolution of Life, Press Release
Evolution In Action? New Study Finds Possibility Of Nitrogen-fixing Organelles
Nitrogen is a nutrient essential for all life on Earth. Although nitrogen gas (N2) is plentiful, it is largely unavailable to most organisms without a process known as nitrogen fixation, […]
Posted inBiochemistry & Organic Chemistry, Biophysics, Genomics, Proteomics, Bioinformatics, Microbiology & Virology, Origin & Evolution of Life, Status Report
Stability Distillation Hypothesis For The Origin Of Life
The essence of life is a frequency distribution conversion process of molecules accompanied by changes in information.
Posted inGenomics, Proteomics, Bioinformatics, Microbiology & Virology, Press Release, Space Life Science
Researchers Discover An Evolutionary Tipping Point In Fungi
Scientists have found a “tipping point” in the evolution of fungi that throttles their growth and sculpts their shapes. The findings, published in the journal Cell Reports, demonstrate how small […]
Posted inBiochemistry & Organic Chemistry, Genomics, Proteomics, Bioinformatics, Origin & Evolution of Life, Status Report
Multi-substrate Specificity Shaped The Complex Evolution Of The Aminotransferase Family Across The Tree Of Life
Aminotransferases (ATs) are an ancient enzyme family that play central roles in core nitrogen metabolism essential to all organisms. However, many of the AT enzyme functions remain poorly defined, limiting […]
Posted inAtmospheres, Climate, Weather, Biochemistry & Organic Chemistry, Biogeochemical Cycles & Geobiology, Biosignatures & Paleobiology, Extremeophiles and Extreme Environments, Microbiology & Virology, Origin & Evolution of Life, Press Release
Harnessing Hydrogen At Life’s Origin
A new report uncovers how hydrogen gas, the energy of the future, provided energy in the past, at the origin of life 4 billion years ago.
Posted inOrigin & Evolution of Life, Press Release
Synthetic DNA Sheds Light On Mysterious Difference Between Living Cells At Different Points In Evolution
“Random DNA” is naturally active in the one-celled fungi yeast, while such DNA is turned off as its natural state in mammalian cells, despite their having a common ancestor a […]
Posted inBiochemistry & Organic Chemistry, Biosignatures & Paleobiology, Genomics, Proteomics, Bioinformatics, Origin & Evolution of Life, Press Release
Modeling The Origins Of Life: New evidence For An RNA World
Charles Darwin described evolution as “descent with modification.” Genetic information in the form of DNA sequences is copied and passed down from one generation to the next. But this process […]
Posted inAstrobiology (general), Biosignatures & Paleobiology, Conferences and Meetings, Courses, Genomics, Proteomics, Bioinformatics, Origin & Evolution of Life, Status Report, Video, Audio, Webcasts, Podcasts
LIFE RCN Seminar Series: From Early Cells to Multicellularity
The Nature of the Last Universal Common Ancestor and its Impact on the Early Earth System
Posted inBiochemistry & Organic Chemistry, Biophysics, Biosignatures & Paleobiology, Gaia - Planetary Perspectives, Genomics, Proteomics, Bioinformatics, Microbiology & Virology, Origin & Evolution of Life, Status Report
Life, Its Definition, Origin, Evolution, and Four-dimensional Hierarchical Structure, Biosystems
The main unique features of biological systems are reviewed, and four necessary and sufficient attributes of life are formulated, based on the ideas of Ervin Bauer.