Editor’s note: with recent speculation about the potential habitability of other worlds and understanding the processes whereby other biospheres arise and evolve, thought needs to be given to developing sensor […]
protein
Posted inBiochemistry & Organic Chemistry, Biosignatures & Paleobiology, Genomics, Proteomics, Bioinformatics, Origin & Evolution of Life, Status Report
Amino Acids as Molecular Linchpins in the Fundamental Prebiotic Processes of RNA Copying and Vesicle Formation
In addition to being delivered via exogenous means (e.g., chondritic meteorites and comets), amino acids are hypothesized to have been present on early Earth via Urey–Miller-type abiotic processes.
Posted inBiochemistry & Organic Chemistry, Biosignatures & Paleobiology, Genomics, Proteomics, Bioinformatics, Microbiology & Virology, Press Release
Minimal Amino Acid Alphabet for Protein Design
Proteins are built from 20 canonical amino acids. It is interesting to explore whether proteins can be formed from significantly reduced amino acid alphabets.
Posted inAstrochemistry, Biogeochemical Cycles & Geobiology, Biophysics, Biosignatures & Paleobiology, Genomics, Proteomics, Bioinformatics, Origin & Evolution of Life, Press Release
Colliding Dust And The Sparks Of Creation
Two microscopic grains collide and produce a tiny spark. This phenomenon may have provided the energy to kick off life on Earth. But if these solid particles have the same […]
Posted inAstropharmacy / Biotechnology, Biochemistry & Organic Chemistry, Biophysics, Biosignatures & Paleobiology, Genomics, Proteomics, Bioinformatics, Nanotechnology & SynBio, Press Release
Millions Of Protein Complexes Added To AlphaFold Database Shed Light On How Proteins Interact
A new collaboration between EMBL’s European Bioinformatics Institute (EMBL-EBI), Google DeepMind, NVIDIA, and Seoul National University has made millions of AI-predicted protein complex structures openly available through the AlphaFold Database. […]
Posted inAway Teams & Field Reports, Biochemistry & Organic Chemistry, Biogeochemical Cycles & Geobiology, Biosignatures & Paleobiology, Fossils & Paleontology, Imaging & Spectroscopy, Press Release, Sample Return
Biosignatures: Detection Of A Biopolymer In 500 Million Year Old Trilobite Fossils
A UT San Antonio-led international research team has identified chitin, the primary organic component of modern crab shells and insect exoskeletons, in trilobite fossils more than 500 million years old, […]
Posted inBiochemistry & Organic Chemistry, Biophysics, Biosignatures & Paleobiology, Genomics, Proteomics, Bioinformatics, Status Report
Entropy-Driven Amino Acid-Based Coacervates with Enzyme-Free Metabolism and Prebiotic Robustness
Protocells capable of nonenzymatic metabolism and environmental adaptation are essential models for understanding the emergence of cellular life.
Posted inAI - Data - Apps - Cybernetics, Biochemistry & Organic Chemistry, Biophysics, Biosignatures & Paleobiology, Genomics, Proteomics, Bioinformatics, Origin & Evolution of Life, Press Release
Understanding Protein Form And Function Better At TU Graz
Proteins are among the most important building blocks of nature and play a central role in biological processes in all organisms.
Posted inBiochemistry & Organic Chemistry, Biophysics, Biosignatures & Paleobiology, Fossils & Paleontology, Genomics, Proteomics, Bioinformatics, Microbiology & Virology, Origin & Evolution of Life, Status Report
Designing Peptide Fossils That Model the Evolution of the Bacterial Ferredoxin Fold
Electron transfer coupled to redox chemistry is at the heart of metabolism. The proteins responsible for moving electrons (protein electron carriers) must have emerged at the origin of life.
Posted inAstrochemistry, Astronomy & Telescopes, Biochemistry & Organic Chemistry, Biophysics, Biosignatures & Paleobiology, Imaging & Spectroscopy, Interstellar, Status Report
Laboratory Rotational Spectroscopy And Interstellar Search For The Protein Precursor 4-oxobutanenitrile (HCOCH2CH2CN)
Understanding the presence and distribution of prebiotic precursors in the interstellar medium (ISM) is key to tracing the chemical origins of life. Among them, 4-oxobutanenitrile (HCOCH2CH2CN) has been identified in […]