Researchers from the University of Texas and Indiana University in the US, have synthesised Hachimoji DNA, a DNA-like molecular system to aid search for alien life.
About:
Hachimoji DNA Is a synthesised molecular system that like DNA, can store and transmit information. It meets all the structural requirements that allow our DNA to store, transmit and evolve information in living systems.
The new informational molecular system is like DNA, except in one key area.
DNA components include four key ingredients called nucleotides. However, the new synthetic DNA molecule has eight informational ingredients instead of four.
It includes the four nucleotides present in Earth life -- adenine, cytosine, guanine, and thymine -- but also four others that mimic the structures of the informational ingredients in regular DNA.
The result is a double-helix structure that can store and transfer information.
Significance:
This new molecular system, which is not a new life form, suggests scientists looking for life beyond Earth may need to rethink what they are looking for.
The finding, published in the journal Science, suggests there could be an alternative to DNA-based life that may be possible on other worlds.
This new work will help develop effective instruments and experiments for NASA's planetary science missions.
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