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Life’s building blocks in Bennu samples

The OSIRIS-REx mission returned a large sample from asteroid Bennu, which Japanese collaborators detected includes all five nucleobases required for life. The analysis revealed high concentrations of ammonia and nitrogen-rich organic matter.

SourceHokkaido University·JournalNature Astronomy·TypeExperimental study·DateJan 29, 2025

Searching for the chemistry of life

A study by DESY's X-ray source PETRA III reveals that dry heating can form characteristic DNA base pairs without water or solvents. The team observed the formation of adenine-thymine and guanine-cytosine pairs at temperatures between 100-200 degrees Celsius, suggesting a possible alternative route to molecular recognition patterns in DNA.

SourceDeutsches Elektronen-Synchrotron DESY·JournalChemical Communications·DateOct 2, 2020

A marine creature's magic trick explained

A team of scientists at the Weizmann Institute discovered that sea sapphires' colorful appearance is caused by photonic crystals, which enable them to control their visibility. The researchers found that the spacing between the crystal plates determines the color and can be adjusted to make the creature appear invisible or visible

SourceWeizmann Institute of Science·JournalJournal of the American Chemical Society·DateSep 2, 2015