How life arose from non-living chemicals more than 3.5 billion years ago on Earth is a still-unanswered question. The RNA world hypothesis assumes that RNA biomolecules were key players during this ...

Synthetic protocells can be made to move toward and away from chemical signals, an important step for the development of new drug-delivery systems that could target specific locations in the body. By ...

Researchers have prepared synthetic protocells coated in red blood cell fragments for use as nitric oxide generating bio-bots within blood vessels. An international team comprising researchers from ...

Unfortunately for scientists, there is no videotape of the universe’s history that they can rewind to watch how life got started on Earth. Instead, they must recapitulate life in the lab to find ...

Researchers have successfully assembled enzyme-powered artificial cells that can float or sink depending on their internal chemical activity. The work provides a new approach to designing complex life ...

A simple mechanism could underlie the growth and self-replication of protocells - putative ancestors of modern living cells - suggests a study publishing September 3 in Biophysical Journal. Protocells ...

Man-made balls of genetic material and membranes can pull off a decent impression of primitive cells. These squishy spheres known as “protocells” can accept chemical deliveries to sustain a division ...

Inspired by the processes of cellular differentiation observed in developmental biology, an interdisciplinary team of researchers at the University of Bristol have demonstrated a new spontaneous ...

Microscopy image showing green, dark blue and blue-labelled synthetic protocells used for DNA communication and computing. The protocells contain DNA logic gates and are trapped between pairs of small ...

From reproductive rights to climate change to Big Tech, The Independent is on the ground when the story is developing. Whether it's investigating the financials of Elon Musk's pro-Trump PAC or ...