Origins of life – Page 4
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Opinion
The scientists who create life
Chemistry has created life for 100 years – but where can it lead us?
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Research
Insights into nucleobase repair on Archean Earth
Self-repair mechanism may be part of nucleic acids’ evolutionary advantage
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Opinion
Revisiting Richard Dawkins' idea of replication
Why The selfish gene is only part of the story
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Research
Photoredox sugar synthesis plausible on early Earth
Study using prebiotically realistic wavelengths adds weight to origin-of-life theory
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Research
Meteorites' mechanical energy might have created building blocks of life
Did a cosmic impact kick-start amino acid formation?
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Research
Robot with AI brain learns to evolve synthetic protocells
Evolution of oil-in-water system guided by machine learning offers insight into origins of life
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Feature
Life on other planets
A series of missions to the moons of Jupiter and Saturn has revealed their potential to harbour life. Nina Notman looks to the skies
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Research
Enzyme-free reaction cycles hint at primitive precursor to metabolism
Reactions between small carboxylates and a hydrogen peroxide catalyst resemble the modern citric acid cycle
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Research
Fossil isotopes reveal life’s diversity 3.5 billion years ago
Early microbes evolved distinct metabolisms based around hydrogen sulfide and methane
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Research
Carbohydrates promoted in new prebiotic theory
Aldol reactions between interstellar materials can make DNA sugar
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Opinion
Did life emerge from hell on Earth?
Why our origins may lie in the Hadean era, 4 billion years ago
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Research
Deuteration of classic origin of life experiment throws up surprises
Replay of iconic Miller–Urey work with heavier hydrogen isotope produces unexpected compounds
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Research
Hydrothermal vents generate deep-sea currents
Minerals spewed by ocean vents set up redox reactions that allow electrical currents to flow
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Opinion
Polymer amphiphiles could help reveal the origins of life
Spontaneous shapes and reactions to light may explain how protocells form
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Feature
Shedding light on the dark proteome
Around half of all human proteins are a mystery. What do they look like, asks Phil Ball
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Research
Synthetic cells pass bacterial Turing test
Chemical communication offers a way to determine how lifelike an artificial cell is