The purine nucleobases adenine and guanine are complex organic molecules that are essential for life. Despite their ubiquitous presence on Earth, purines have yet to be detected in observations of […]
Life
Posted inBiosignatures & Paleobiology, Genomics, Proteomics, Bioinformatics, Mars, Status Report, Tricorders & Sensors
Development of Sensitive Methods for the Detection of Minimum Concentrations of DNA on Martian Soil Simulants
Several methods used for the quantification of DNA are based on UV absorbance or the fluorescence of complexes with intercalator dyes.
Posted inBiochemistry & Organic Chemistry, Genomics, Proteomics, Bioinformatics, Origin & Evolution of Life, Status Report
Mineral-Mediated Oligoribonucleotide Condensation: Broadening the Scope of Prebiotic Possibilities on the Early Earth
The origin of life on earth requires the synthesis of protobiopolymers in realistic geologic environments along strictly abiotic pathways that rely on inorganic phases (such as minerals) instead of cellular […]
![(A) The proposed active complex proposed by Rode et al. (1990) for the SIPF reaction for a protonated and neutral alanine molecule [18]. (B) Another plausible SIPF active complex between two neutral alanine molecules in a cis configuration as proposed by Rimola et al. (2007) [20]. Here, cis refers to the relative position of the N (or equivalently O) atoms on the same side of the plane containing the Cu atom. In this figure, red denotes oxygen, blue denotes nitrogen, gray denotes carbon, light gray denotes hydrogen, orange denotes copper, and green denotes chlorine. -- Life](https://i0.wp.com/astrobiology.com/wp-content/uploads/2023/10/TheRoleOf.png?resize=1200%2C719&ssl=1)
Posted inAstrochemistry, Biochemistry & Organic Chemistry, Genomics, Proteomics, Bioinformatics, Origin & Evolution of Life, Status Report
The Role of the CuCl Active Complex in the Stereoselectivity of the Salt-Induced Peptide Formation Reaction: Insights from Density Functional Theory Calculations
The salt-induced peptide formation (SIPF) reaction is a prebiotically plausible mechanism for the spontaneous polymerization of amino acids into peptides on early Earth.
Posted inGaia - Planetary Perspectives, Societal Issues, Status Report
Opinion: Planetary Scale Information Transmission in the Biosphere and Technosphere: Limits and Evolution
Information transmission via communication between agents is ubiquitous on Earth, and is a vital facet of living systems.
![Examples of prebiotic analogue conditions. (A) A boiling, hydrothermal pool on Mount Mutnovsky, an active volcano south of Petropavlovsk, Kamchatka, Russia. The author is pointing at a membranous froth produced by myristic acid added to the pool [4]. Photo credit: Tony Hoffman). (B) Hydrothermal water in Bumpass Hell on Mount Lassen, California (photograph by author). (C) Hydrothermal pools in Hell’s Gate, near Rotorua, New Zealand (Photograph by author). (D) Fly Geyser in the Black Rock playa of northern Nevada (credit: Bruce Damer). -- Life](https://i0.wp.com/astrobiology.com/wp-content/uploads/2023/09/Template.png?resize=1200%2C720&ssl=1)
Posted inExtremeophiles and Extreme Environments, Genomics, Proteomics, Bioinformatics, Microbiology & Virology, Origin & Evolution of Life, Status Report
Template-Directed Replication and Chiral Resolution during Wet–Dry Cycling in Hydrothermal Pools
The commonly supposed template-based format for RNA self-replication requires both duplex assembly and disassembly.
![Effect of temperature on the peptide aggregation process. Left: side view of (ODAP—STEP) bilayer systems with peptides at 0 ns (a) and 500 ns at 353 K (b), 338 K (c), and 323 K (d); KSPFPFAA peptides are shown in mauve, while ODAP and STEP are in gray and green, respectively. Right: number of the clusters as a function of time formed during the 500 ns MD simulation with cutoff 0.6 nm at 353 K (e) (previously reported by the authors in Ref. [44]), 338 K (f), and 323 (g) -- Life](https://i0.wp.com/astrobiology.com/wp-content/uploads/2023/09/structural.png?resize=1200%2C716&ssl=1)
Posted inBiochemistry & Organic Chemistry, Biophysics, Genomics, Proteomics, Bioinformatics, Origin & Evolution of Life, Status Report
Structural Phenomena in a Vesicle Membrane Obtained through an Evolution Experiment: A Study Based on MD Simulations
The chemical evolution of biomolecules was clearly affected by the overall extreme environmental conditions found on Early Earth.
Posted inAtmospheres, Climate, Weather, Biosignatures & Paleobiology, Habitable Zones, Plant Biology, Space Agriculture, Space Life Science, Status Report
Growth and Photosynthetic Efficiency of Microalgae and Plants with Different Levels of Complexity Exposed to a Simulated M-Dwarf Starlight
Oxygenic photosynthetic organisms (OPOs) are primary producers on Earth and generate surface and atmospheric biosignatures, making them ideal targets to search for life from remote on Earth-like exoplanets orbiting stars […]
Posted inBiochemistry & Organic Chemistry, Biophysics, Biosignatures & Paleobiology, Enceladus, Europa, Habitable Zones, Icy Worlds, Press Release
Astrobiology Review: A Review on Hypothesized Metabolic Pathways on Europa and Enceladus: Space-Flight Detection Considerations
Enceladus and Europa, icy moons of Saturn and Jupiter, respectively, are believed to be habitable with liquid water oceans and therefore are of interest for future life detection missions and […]
Posted inAstrochemistry, Astrogeology, Biochemistry & Organic Chemistry, Biosignatures & Paleobiology, Comets and Asteroids, Meteorites & Asteroids, Press Release
Organic Matter In The Asteroid Ryugu: What We Know So Far
Simple Summary: Organic matter is an integral part of all living things on our planet, but abiotic (not relating to life) organic matter can be found throughout the Solar System […]