Indian scientist proposes new 'origin of life'
How did life begin on Earth? While there are several theories, an Indian scientist working in the US has proposed a new set of “origins of life,” chemical reactions that could lead to the development of amino acids – the building blocks of protein and DNA – from chemicals and gases present on the ancient Earth. Four billion years ago, Earth looked very different, lifeless and covered by a vast ocean. Over millions of years, in that primordial soup, life arose. There are several hypotheses about how life arose from inorganic molecules. Now, a team led by Ramanarayanan Krishnamurthy at the Scripps Research Institute, La Jolla, California has discovered a new set of chemical reactions that use cyanide, ammonia, and carbon dioxide — all thought to be common on the early Earth — to produce amino and nucleic acids. acids, building blocks of protein and DNA. “We came up with a new paradigm to explain the shift from pre-biotic to biotic chemistry,” said Krishnamurthy, lead author of the st