Hulst, Ronja, R I (2023) The origin of life: from molecules to cells. Master's Thesis / Essay, Biology.
|
Text
Hulst_Ronja_MSc_Essay_The origin of life_.pdf Download (603kB) | Preview |
|
![[img]](https://fse.studenttheses.ub.rug.nl/style/images/fileicons/text.png) |
Text
toestemming.pdf Restricted to Registered users only Download (140kB) |
Abstract
The origin of life is one of the biggest unsolved mysteries in the world. To explain the origin of all living species, an evolutionary tree of life was built, tracing back all organisms to the beginning of life. At the very beginning, stood our last universal common ancestor (LUCA). However, LUCA already was a fully formed organism and it must have also originated somewhere. It is believed that the first life forms originated from simple organic chemicals that through biochemical reactions developed life-like functions and eventually over time developed into fully functional organisms. Scientist have been investigating which biomolecules and processes happened to create life, by reducing life to only its essential properties as well as experimentally trying to recreate the early conditions on Earth. These processes have yielded several different theories on how life could arise based on RNA, peptides, lipids, or coenzymes. These theories study the different molecules and processes in isolation, which makes it easier to determine specific mechanisms. The downfall of this method is that it will never form a complete picture of the origin of life even if you would combine them, since it will leave out the interactions between the different components. The emergence of life from non-living compounds is a complex system, which cannot be fully understood if we only look at the components in isolation.
| Item Type: | Thesis (Master's Thesis / Essay) |
|---|---|
| Supervisor name: | Wertheim, B. |
| Degree programme: | Biology |
| Thesis type: | Master's Thesis / Essay |
| Language: | English |
| Date Deposited: | 07 Mar 2023 14:21 |
| Last Modified: | 07 Mar 2023 14:21 |
| URI: | https://fse.studenttheses.ub.rug.nl/id/eprint/29368 |
Actions (login required)
 |
View Item |