Polyester microdroplets could thus be a reasonable protocell model owing to the wide availability of αHAs on early Earth, their ease of synthesis, and functional properties. However, the early Earth ...

One leading theory on the origins of life on Earth proposes that simple chemical molecules gradually became more complex, ultimately forming protocells—primitive, non-living structures that were ...

Researchers take an important step towards the production of fully biobased, rigid polyesters. They present a simple, yet innovative, synthesis strategy to overcome the inherently low reactivity of ...

Amsterdam researchers have made a major leap forward in the production of biobased polyesters. The breakthrough could ultimately pave the way for commercial bioplastics. Bioplastics offer a promising ...

Enzymatic polymer synthesis harnesses specialised enzymes, most commonly lipases, to catalyse the formation of polymer chains from monomers derived from renewable biomass. Unlike traditional ...

In a recent paper in Nature Communications, researchers at the Industrial Sustainable Chemistry group led by Prof. Gert-Jan Gruter take an important step towards the production of fully biobased, ...

Scientists have long been fascinated with the origin of life on Earth, namely the transition from simple pre-biotic organic molecules to living cell systems. How did these chemical reactions come ...

A recent study investigates how polyester microdroplets, potential precursors to modern cells, could form under realistic early Earth conditions. Researchers pushed these conditions to the limits, ...