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Identifying molecules as biosignatures with assembly theory and mass spectrometry

Author

Listed:
  • Stuart M. Marshall

    (University of Glasgow)

  • Cole Mathis

    (University of Glasgow)

  • Emma Carrick

    (University of Glasgow)

  • Graham Keenan

    (University of Glasgow)

  • Geoffrey J. T. Cooper

    (University of Glasgow)

  • Heather Graham

    (NASA Goddard Space Flight Center)

  • Matthew Craven

    (University of Glasgow)

  • Piotr S. Gromski

    (University of Glasgow)

  • Douglas G. Moore

    (Arizona State University)

  • Sara. I. Walker

    (Arizona State University)

  • Leroy Cronin

    (University of Glasgow)

Abstract

The search for alien life is hard because we do not know what signatures are unique to life. We show why complex molecules found in high abundance are universal biosignatures and demonstrate the first intrinsic experimentally tractable measure of molecular complexity, called the molecular assembly index (MA). To do this we calculate the complexity of several million molecules and validate that their complexity can be experimentally determined by mass spectrometry. This approach allows us to identify molecular biosignatures from a set of diverse samples from around the world, outer space, and the laboratory, demonstrating it is possible to build a life detection experiment based on MA that could be deployed to extraterrestrial locations, and used as a complexity scale to quantify constraints needed to direct prebiotically plausible processes in the laboratory. Such an approach is vital for finding life elsewhere in the universe or creating de-novo life in the lab.

Suggested Citation

  • Stuart M. Marshall & Cole Mathis & Emma Carrick & Graham Keenan & Geoffrey J. T. Cooper & Heather Graham & Matthew Craven & Piotr S. Gromski & Douglas G. Moore & Sara. I. Walker & Leroy Cronin, 2021. "Identifying molecules as biosignatures with assembly theory and mass spectrometry," Nature Communications, Nature, vol. 12(1), pages 1-9, December.
    • Handle: RePEc:nat:natcom:v:12:y:2021:i:1:d:10.1038_s41467-021-23258-x
    DOI: 10.1038/s41467-021-23258-x
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    Cited by:

    1. Srinivasan, Aditya & Srinivasan, Arvind & Goodman, Michael R. & Riceberg, Justin S. & Guise, Kevin G. & Shapiro, Matthew L., 2023. "Hippocampal and Medial Prefrontal Cortex Fractal Spiking Patterns Encode Episodes and Rules," Chaos, Solitons & Fractals, Elsevier, vol. 171(C).
    2. Koudai Taguchi & Alexis Gilbert & Barbara Sherwood Lollar & Thomas Giunta & Christopher J. Boreham & Qi Liu & Juske Horita & Yuichiro Ueno, 2022. "Low 13C-13C abundances in abiotic ethane," Nature Communications, Nature, vol. 13(1), pages 1-10, December.

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