Lipids as Universal Biomarkers of Extraterrestrial Life

Georgiou, Christos D.; Deamer, David W.

doi:10.1089/ast.2013.1134

Cited by 97 publications

(72 citation statements)

References 105 publications

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“…Membranes in living organisms are generally characterized by a specific distribution profile of lipids, with a strong dominance of lipids with an even number of 14-20 carbons (Georgiou and Deamer, 2014). Many lipids, such as isoprenoids, have no known abiotic source and are derived from unique structural building blocks (e.g., isoprene units) specific to life (Summons et al, 2008).…”

Section: Molecular Biomarkersmentioning

confidence: 99%

The Significance of Microbe-Mineral-Biomarker Interactions in the Detection of Life on Mars and Beyond

Röling¹,

Aerts²,

Patty³

et al. 2015

Astrobiology

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The detection of biomarkers plays a central role in our effort to establish whether there is, or was, life beyond Earth. In this review, we address the importance of considering mineralogy in relation to the selection of locations and biomarker detection methodologies with characteristics most promising for exploration. We review relevant mineral-biomarker and mineral-microbe interactions. The local mineralogy on a particular planet reflects its past and current environmental conditions and allows a habitability assessment by comparison with life under extreme conditions on Earth. The type of mineral significantly influences the potential abundances and types of biomarkers and microorganisms containing these biomarkers. The strong adsorptive power of some minerals aids in the preservation of biomarkers and may have been important in the origin of life. On the other hand, this strong adsorption as well as oxidizing properties of minerals can interfere with efficient extraction and detection of biomarkers. Differences in mechanisms of adsorption and in properties of minerals and biomarkers suggest that it will be difficult to design a single extraction procedure for a wide range of biomarkers. While on Mars samples can be used for direct detection of biomarkers such as nucleic acids, amino acids, and lipids, on other planetary bodies remote spectrometric detection of biosignatures has to be relied upon. The interpretation of spectral signatures of photosynthesis can also be affected by local mineralogy. We identify current gaps in our knowledge and indicate how they may be filled to improve the chances of detecting biomarkers on Mars and beyond.

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Section: Molecular Biomarkersmentioning

confidence: 99%

The Significance of Microbe-Mineral-Biomarker Interactions in the Detection of Life on Mars and Beyond

Röling¹,

Aerts²,

Patty³

et al. 2015

Astrobiology

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“…Due to this compartmentalization process, membranes are a fundamental signature of life, arising early in evolutionary history to allow for gradients to be generated that can be exploited in metabolism [1–3]. Control of this metabolism is orchestrated by a host of membrane-associated proteins, which together account for ~ 30% of the human proteome [4, 5] and accounts for ~ 60% of current drug targets [6], making these membrane-associated proteins a perpetually popular topic of investigation.…”

Section: Complementing Experiments With Simulation At the Membrane mentioning

confidence: 99%

Atomic-level description of protein–lipid interactions using an accelerated membrane model

Baylon

Vermaas

Müller

et al. 2016

Biochimica et Biophysica Acta (BBA) - Biomembranes

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Peripheral membrane proteins are structurally diverse proteins that are involved in fundamental cellular processes. Their activity of these proteins is frequently modulated through their interaction with cellular membranes, and as a result techniques to study the interfacial interaction between peripheral proteins and the membrane are in high demand. Due to the fluid nature of the membrane and the reversibility of protein–membrane interactions, the experimental study of these systems remains a challenging task. Molecular dynamics simulations offer a suitable approach to study protein–lipid interactions; however, the slow dynamics of the lipids often prevents sufficient sampling of specific membrane–protein interactions in atomistic simulations. To increase lipid dynamics while preserving the atomistic detail of protein–lipid interactions, in the highly mobile membrane-mimetic (HMMM) model the membrane core is replaced by an organic solvent, while short-tailed lipids provide a nearly complete representation of natural lipids at the organic solvent/water interface. Here, we present a brief introduction and a summary of recent applications of the HMMM to study different membrane proteins, complementing the experimental characterization of the presented systems, and we offer a perspective of future applications of the HMMM to study other classes of membrane proteins.

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“…Mineral compartments have been proposed to serve in this regard (Russell and Hall, 1997), but for cellular life to begin, a molecular system must be encapsulated by a fluid phase membranous compartment composed of amphiphilic compounds. The properties of the amphiphiles must be such that the membranes they form are both stable and fluid under the conditions of the environment (Georgiou and Deamer, 2014). These properties are related to chain length, unsaturation, branching and the hydrophilic groups of the amphiphiles.…”

Section: Self-assembly Concentration and Synthetic Chemistry In Hydmentioning

confidence: 99%

Hydrothermal Conditions and the Origin of Cellular Life

Deamer

Georgiou

2015

Astrobiology

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The conditions and properties of hydrothermal vents and hydrothermal fields are compared in terms of their ability to support processes related to the origin of life. The two sites can be considered as alternative hypotheses, and from this comparison we propose a series of experimental tests to distinguish between them, focusing on those that involve concentration of solutes, self-assembly of membranous compartments and synthesis of polymers.

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Lipids as Universal Biomarkers of Extraterrestrial Life

Cited by 97 publications

References 105 publications

The Significance of Microbe-Mineral-Biomarker Interactions in the Detection of Life on Mars and Beyond

The Significance of Microbe-Mineral-Biomarker Interactions in the Detection of Life on Mars and Beyond

Atomic-level description of protein–lipid interactions using an accelerated membrane model

Hydrothermal Conditions and the Origin of Cellular Life

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