More Evidence That the Blueprint For Life Started in Space
In a new study, scientists have found the remaining two of the five informational units—known as nucleobases (adenine, guanine, cytosine, thymine and uracil)—of DNA and RNA that were still to be detected in meteorite samples, adding evidence to the theory that life began in space. The study, led by associate professor Yasuhiro Oba of Japan’s Hokkaido University, has revealed the elusive cytosine and thymine within meteor samples that fell to Earth and landed in Australia, British Columbia and the US. The same testing technique was applied to soil from the Australian site, and “the meteorite values were greater than the surrounding soil, which suggests that the compounds came to Earth in these rocks.” While life could have “formed in a warm soup of earthly chemistry,” this exciting discovery adds to evidence to the theory that “life’s precursors originally came from space.” Read more at Science News.
Image courtesy of NASA
Via sciencenews.org link opens in a new window
