Discovering paths the chemicals of life likely took on Earth could make it possible to calculate probabilities of life on other planets. Credit: NASA/Ames/JPL-Caltech
The evolutionary path to first proteins may have been paved with relatively easy, small steps. Ancestors of the first protein molecules, key components of all cells, could have been bountiful on pre-life Earth, according to a new study led by researchers at the Georgia Institute of Technology, who formed hundreds of possible precursor molecules in the lab. Then they meticulously analyzed the molecules with latest technology and new algorithms.
They found that the molecules, called depsipeptides, formed quickly and abundantly under conditions that would have been common on prebiotic Earth, and with ingredients that would have ...
Read More
Recent Comments