Más que a la IA convendría estar atentos a lo que se hace con la vida espejo

New modelling suggests that even if we could create cells based on mirror-image biomolecules, their natural counterparts would outcompete them in the wild

Microbes based on mirror images of molecules in the natural world would have a hard time surviving outside the laboratory, according to a modelling study. To do so, they would need a ready supply of “mirror food”, or some novel way to feed themselves. But the research has drawn a backlash from other experts in the field who warn that it may underestimate the grave risks posed by so-called mirror life. Many biological molecules, such as DNA and proteins, are chiral, which means they can exist in either left-handed or right-handed forms. Like your left and right hands, they are mirror images of each other, and cannot be superimposed. But all life on Earth uses right-handed DNA molecules and left-handed protein molecules, which enables cellular machinery to fit together properly. While it is not yet technically feasible, one day it may be possible to manufacture organisms in which the handedness, or chirality, of molecules is reversed. In 2024, 38 scientists published a paper in Science calling for work towards the creation of mirror life to be halted because of the dangers such organisms may pose – for example, immune systems may not be able to recognise and defend against mirror...

Cognitive processes are realized across an extraordinary range of natural, artificial, and hybrid systems, yet there is no unified framework for comparing their forms, limits, and unrealized possibili...

We create vector graphics of model organisms and emerging biological research organisms to enhance our publications. We’re sharing these editable graphics under a CC0 license for other scientists to...

The slime mould Physarum polycephalum displays adaptive transport dynamics and network formation that have inspired its use as a model of biological computation. We develop a Lagrangian formulation of...

Cognition is often associated with complex brains, yet many forms of learning—such as habituation, sensitization, and even spacing effects—have been observed in single cells and aneural organisms. The...

Proximity-ligation-based sequencing from 111 samples and 5 environments reveals that a substantial proportion of phages infect multiple species.

Transcription factors (TFs) may activate or repress gene expression through an interplay of different mechanisms, including RNA polymerase (RNAP) recruitment, exclusion, and initiation. However, depen...

Plasmids are autonomously replicating DNA molecules that stably coexist with chromosomes in bacterial cells. These genetic elements drive horizontal gene transfer and play a fundamental role in bacter...

npj Systems Biology and Applications - Open problems in synthetic multicellularity