Download or read book RNA Catalysis and the Origin of Life written by Thomas Cech and published by . This book was released on 1990 with total page 32 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt:

Download or read book Ribozymes and RNA Catalysis written by David Malcolm James Lilley and published by Royal Society of Chemistry. This book was released on 2008 with total page 339 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: Takes the reader through the origins of catalysis in RNA and necessarily includes significant discussion of structure and folding. The main focus of the book concerns chemical mechanism with extensive comment on how, despite the importance of RNA catalysis in the cell, its origins are still poorly understood and often controversial. The reader is given an outline of the important role of RNA catalysis in many aspects of cell function, including RNA processing and translation.

Download or read book The Search for Life s Origins written by National Research Council and published by National Academies Press. This book was released on 1990-02-01 with total page 161 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: The field of planetary biology and chemical evolution draws together experts in astronomy, paleobiology, biochemistry, and space science who work together to understand the evolution of living systems. This field has made exciting discoveries that shed light on how organic compounds came together to form self-replicating molecules-the origin of life. This volume updates that progress and offers recommendations on research programs-including an ambitious effort centered on Mars-to advance the field over the next 10 to 15 years. The book presents a wide range of data and research results on these and other issues: The biogenic elements and their interaction in the interstellar clouds and in solar nebulae. Early planetary environments and the conditions that lead to the origin of life. The evolution of cellular and multicellular life. The search for life outside the solar system. This volume will become required reading for anyone involved in the search for life's beginnings-including exobiologists, geoscientists, planetary scientists, and U.S. space and science policymakers.

Download or read book RNA Catalysis Splicing Evolution written by M. Belfort and published by Elsevier. This book was released on 2012-12-02 with total page 239 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: The conference on "RNA: Catalysis, Splicing, Evolution" brought together a unique assembly of scientific leaders in this currently very important field. Two participants of this Conference, Drs. T.R. Cech and S. Altman, were just awarded the 1989 Nobel prize in chemistry, which attests to the timeliness of this volume. The critical reviews authored by these two prominent scientists are included. For those scientists with roots in this field, who do not subscribe to GENE, this is an excellent opportunity to obtain a masterly collection of papers. All the original papers and reviews have undergone the rigorous peer review of the journal "Gene".

Download or read book The Emergence of Life written by Pier Luigi Luisi and published by Cambridge University Press. This book was released on 2006-07-13 with total page 268 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: The origin of life from inanimate matter has been the focus of much research for decades, both experimentally and philosophically. Luisi takes the reader through the consecutive stages from prebiotic chemistry to synthetic biology, uniquely combining both approaches. This book presents a systematic course discussing the successive stages of self-organisation, emergence, self-replication, autopoiesis, synthetic compartments and construction of cellular models, in order to demonstrate the spontaneous increase in complexity from inanimate matter to the first cellular life forms. A chapter is dedicated to each of these steps, using a number of synthetic and biological examples. With end-of-chapter review questions to aid reader comprehension, this book will appeal to graduate students and academics researching the origin of life and related areas such as evolutionary biology, biochemistry, molecular biology, biophysics and natural sciences.

Download or read book Probing RNA Catalysis in Protocellular Settings Relevant to the Origin of Life written by Elia Salibi and published by . This book was released on 2023 with total page 0 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt:

Download or read book Why Does Evolution Matter written by Gabriel Trueba and published by Cambridge Scholars Publishing. This book was released on 2014 with total page 0 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: Evolution is not merely a chapter in biology textbooks; rather, it is the mesh that embraces and connects every biological phenomenon; indeed, as Dobzhansky pointed out, nothing in biology could be understood without the evolutionary logic. The contents of this book highlight the importance of evolution in applied biological sciences such as agricultural, medical, environmental and the social sciences. Evolutionary science provides renewed ideas which can result in practical applications and tools that deal with current problems concerning humanity, such as disease, food production, and environmental destruction. Most of the topics in this book were discussed during the III Summit on Evolution which took place in the Galapagos Islands in June 2013, hosted by the Galapagos Institute for the Arts and Sciences and the Galapagos Science Institute, Universidad San Francisco de Quito.

Download or read book The Molecular Origins of Life written by André Brack and published by Cambridge University Press. This book was released on 1998-12-28 with total page 432 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: This 199 book reviews discoveries in astronomy, paleontology, biology and chemistry to help us to understand the likely origin of life on Earth.

Download or read book Origins of Life written by David W. Deamer and published by Jones & Bartlett Publishers. This book was released on 1994 with total page 452 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt:

Download or read book The Limits of Organic Life in Planetary Systems written by National Research Council and published by National Academies Press. This book was released on 2007-07-26 with total page 116 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: The search for life in the solar system and beyond has to date been governed by a model based on what we know about life on Earth (terran life). Most of NASA's mission planning is focused on locations where liquid water is possible and emphasizes searches for structures that resemble cells in terran organisms. It is possible, however, that life exists that is based on chemical reactions that do not involve carbon compounds, that occurs in solvents other than water, or that involves oxidation-reduction reactions without oxygen gas. To assist NASA incorporate this possibility in its efforts to search for life, the NRC was asked to carry out a study to evaluate whether nonstandard biochemistry might support life in solar system and conceivable extrasolar environments, and to define areas to guide research in this area. This book presents an exploration of a limited set of hypothetical chemistries of life, a review of current knowledge concerning key questions or hypotheses about nonterran life, and suggestions for future research.

Download or read book The RNA World written by Raymond F. Gesteland and published by CSHL Press. This book was released on 2006 with total page 774 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: Recent studies on the activities of RNA in the cell have revolutionized our understanding of the many roles played by this molecule. The first two editions of The RNA World(1993, 1999) shed light on the pre–biotic era dominated by this versatile molecule, and provided an overview of the state of RNA research at the time. The new third edition of The RNA Worldupdates this perspective, describing the vast array of newly discovered roles for RNA in the modern world. The updated original chapters are supplemented with new chapters on RNA–protein complexes, snRNPs and snoRNPs, telomerase RNA, RNAi, microRNAs, noncoding RNA, and many other subjects. This book is essential reading for anyone interested in the biology of nucleic acids and gene regulation and a valuable resource for teaching these concepts.

Download or read book Chirality and Life written by Rolf M. Flügel and published by Springer Science & Business Media. This book was released on 2011-01-11 with total page 66 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: This book presents the fascinating formation of the first simple bioorganic molecules and describes the hidden aspects of chiral compounds, which raise questions on the molecular beginnings of life. The occurrences of extraterrestrial, non-standard amino acids in meteorites are dealt with in detail, as well as their subsequent transfer to proteinogenic amino acids. The concept of asymmetric organo-catalysis for the synthesis of carbohydrates and ribonucleosides are considered. The notion of a single amino acid that functions as an enzyme is developed. Attempts to simulate ancient world scenarios are critically reviewed. There is a special focus on ribozymes and the resulting RNA world. Combinations of different world scenarios are discussed in view of an on-going evolution. The currently most plausible hypotheses and visions of ancient world scenarios that led to today’s DNA world are also provided. Included is a pre-cellular world of viruses that is presented for the first time.

Download or read book Ribozymes written by Sabine Müller and published by John Wiley & Sons. This book was released on 2021-07-09 with total page 81 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: Ribozymes Provides comprehensive coverage of a core field in the molecular biosciences, bringing together decades of knowledge from the world’s top professionals in the field Timely and unique in its breadth of content, this all-encompassing and authoritative reference on ribozymes documents the great diversity of nucleic acid-based catalysis. It integrates the knowledge gained over the past 35 years in the field and features contributions from virtually every leading expert on the subject. Ribozymes is organized into six major parts. It starts by describing general principles and strategies of nucleic acid catalysis. It then introduces naturally occurring ribozymes and includes the search for new catalytic motifs or novel genomic locations of known motifs. Next, it covers the development and design of engineered ribozymes, before moving on to DNAzymes as a close relative of ribozymes. The next part examines the use of ribozymes for medicinal and environmental diagnostics, as well as for therapeutic tools. It finishes with a look at the tools and methods in ribozyme research, including the techniques and assays for structural and functional characterization of nucleic acid catalysts. The first reference to tie together all aspects of the multi-faceted field of ribozymes Features more than 30 comprehensive chapters in two volumes Covers the chemical principles of RNA catalysis; naturally occurring ribozymes, engineered ribozymes; DNAzymes; ribozymes as tools in diagnostics and therapy, and tools and methods to study ribozymes Includes first-hand accounts of concepts, techniques, and applications by a team of top international experts from leading academic institutions Dedicates half of its content to methods and practical applications, ranging from bioanalytical tools to medical diagnostics to therapeutics Ribozymes is an unmatched resource for all biochemists, biotechnologists, molecular biologists, and bioengineers interested in the topic.

Download or read book The Origin and Nature of Life on Earth written by Eric Smith and published by Cambridge University Press. This book was released on 2016-03-31 with total page 703 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: Uniting the foundations of physics and biology, this groundbreaking multidisciplinary and integrative book explores life as a planetary process.

Download or read book The Origins of Life Molecules and Natural Selection written by Leslie E. Orgel and published by John Wiley & Sons. This book was released on 1973 with total page 258 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt:

Download or read book Molecular Biology of RNA written by Masayori Inouye and published by . This book was released on 1987 with total page 472 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: Molecular Biology of RNA: New Perspectives provides an overview of the developments in RNA research as well as the approaches, strategies, and methodologies used. Most of the contributing authors in the present volume participated in the Fifth Stony Brook Symposium entitled ""New Perspectives on the Molecular Biology of RNA"" in May 1986. The text is organized into six parts. Part I contains papers dealing with RNA as an enzyme. Part II presents studies on RNA splicing. Part III examines RNA viruses while Part IV focuses on the role of RNA in DNA replication. Part V is devoted to the structure ...

Download or read book Towards Investigation of RNA Catalysis and Compartmentalization written by Erica Frankel and published by . This book was released on 2017 with total page pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: The assembly of molecules and their subsequent reactions that led to the origins of life on Earth nearly four billion years ago remains one of the most elusive mysteries in modern science. One of the first steps scientists look along this timeline is how potentially important molecules, such as early forms of peptides, lipids, and nucleic acids, could have formed. In some cases, it seems plausible that these molecules could have been created on Earth through a sequence of reactions with simple precursors, including methane and cyanide, catalyzed by an electric shock. In other cases, it is proposed that meteors that hit the Earths surface brought a menagerie of early molecules that could have acted as precursors for the biomolecules that are pertinent in modern biology today.A second step along this timeline that scientists are particularly interested in is how these newly formed molecules could have been concentrated to form some of the first protocells. Environmental conditions such as warm little ponds, which circuitously evaporate and refill, and porous rock, which would attract various charged molecules to their surface, are examples where potentially important molecules could concentrate, interact, and form the first non-membranous compartments. These highly concentrated environments could have facilitated some of the first autocatalyzed reactions, such as ligation, polymerization, and cleavage. RNA was thought to play a key role in some of these initial pertinent reactions, for its dual functionality to autocatalyze self-cleavage/self-ligation reactions and store genetic information.A third step represents a progression from the second, through the cultivation of more advanced self-catalytic systems. One of the biggest challenges in the origins of life is the ability for a system to self-replicate. Under most RNA systems, RNA replication uses a template strand to build a complementary strand off of, one nucleotide at a time. One limitation for early replication methods is strand dissociation of the product-template complex in order to promote turnover of the template. Again, the earliest primordial systems could have used environmental changes such as temperature and pH to denature template-product complexed to allow for turnover to occur. It is important to note that these steps are relatively arbitrary and most likely did not happen sequentially. It is more than possible that many of these events could have occurred at the same time. Moreover, there are many other steps not included herein, and it is almost certainly the case that the number of steps to reach the earliest organisms may be countless. This thesis, however, lies right at the cusp of steps two and three, as it focuses on the compartmentalization and catalysis of RNA molecules. One key obstacle to forming longer polymers of progenitor molecules would be to concentrate precursor molecules into compartments. In Chapter Two, I characterize the compartmentalization of nucleotides in the presence of a long polyamine. The combination of these two charged molecules spontaneously formed liquid phase droplets in solution, which are referred to as complex coacervates. I find that these coacervate droplets could strongly partition these nucleotides and metal ions, reaching concentrations in the molar regime. Having non-membranous protocells, rich in these types of molecules would may have been important for the generation of primitive polymers.It seems unlikely that earliest forms of RNA would have catalyzed self-cleavage reactions using only one mechanistic pathway. In Chapter Three, we investigate one small RNA enzyme, the hammerhead ribozyme, which uses different methods to activate the general base for catalysis, depending on the environmental conditions. It explicitly reveals RNAs adaptability to efficiently auto-catalyze reactions no matter the conditions, by means of perturbing nucleobase pKas. This theme is carried out into Chapter Four, which broadens the scope of pKa shifting into a platform that can be utilized by RNA and protein scientists. Often pKa shifting can significantly increase catalytic efficiency, yet is seldom observed in experiments. This chapter uses thermodynamics to probe pH dependent interactions that would otherwise be undetected by traditional experimental methods.The thesis merges into the third step in Chapter Five with the evidence of multiple turnover in the hammerhead ribozyme. Under these scenarios, we find that the turnover of the enzyme strand can be easily facilitated by simple changes to environmental conditions. In solutions of high pH and high temperature, the ribozyme can readily turnover nearly 200 times without loss of integrity or degradation. This is quite insightful for drawing some conclusions on how Earths environment could have accelerated the generation of more advanced catalytic molecules.In summary, my thesis supports some of the hypotheses leading to the earliest forms of life on Earth. Moreover, some of the phenomena described herein, including the formation of RNA rich non-membranous compartments and pKa shifting, are all found in extant cells, bridging the gap between the earliest primordial chemistry and modern cellular biology.