This illustration shows the structure of a new synthetic DNA molecule, dubbed hachimoji DNA, which uses the four informational ingredients of regular DNA (green, red, blue, yellow) in addition to four new ones (cyan, pink, purple, orange).Millie Georgiadis, Indiana University School of Medicine
In a research breakthrough funded by NASA, scientists have synthesized a molecular system that, like DNA, can store and transmit information. This unprecedented feat suggests there could be an alternative to DNA-based life, as we know it on Earth – a genetic system for life that may be possible on other worlds.
This new molecular system, which is not a new life form, suggests scientists looking for life beyond Earth may need to rethink what they are looking for. The research appears in Science Magazine.
Read the full article from NASA at:
https://www.nasa.gov/press-release/nasa-funded-research-creates-dna-like-molecule-to-aid-search-for-alien-life
The study, “Hachimoji DNA and RNA: A genetic system with eight building blocks,” was published in journal Science . The work was supported by NASA Astrobiology through the Exobiology Program.