Promise

PROMISE - First in the Protocells Triptych

PROMISE

The first steps on the evolutionary path toward primitive life was a spontaneous self-assembly process in which lipid molecules become organized into spherical membranous compartments that contain polymers resembling nucleic acids. Trillions of protocells are generated from just a few milligrams of lipid. Each protocell is like a microscopic experiment in which inanimate matter is finding ways to become alive. If you cut open a protocell, you will be looking at molecules made of atoms born over 4.5 billion years ago in exploding and colliding stars. As Carl Sagan said, "We're made of star stuff."