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 […]
evolution
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.
Posted inGenomics, Proteomics, Bioinformatics, Microbiology & Virology, Origin & Evolution of Life, Status Report
The Key Steps in the Origin of Life to the Formation of the Eukaryotic Cell
The path from life’s origin to the emergence of the eukaryotic cell was long and complex, and as such it is rarely treated in one publication.
Posted inBiophysics, Microbiology & Virology, Origin & Evolution of Life, Status Report
Predicting The First Steps Of Evolution In Randomly Assembled Communities
Microbial communities can self-assemble into highly diverse states with predictable statistical properties. However, these initial states can be disrupted by rapid evolution of the resident strains. When a new mutation […]
Posted inBiosignatures & Paleobiology, Fossils & Paleontology, Mapping, Geodesy, Cartography, Bathymetry, Origin & Evolution of Life, Plant Biology, Press Release
Rare 3D Fossils Show That Some Early Trees Had Forms Unlike Any You’ve Ever Seen
In the fossil record, trees typically are preserved with only their trunks. They don’t usually include any leaves to show what their canopies and overall forms may have looked like.