Jove
Visualize
Contact Us
JoVE
x logofacebook logolinkedin logoyoutube logo
ABOUT JoVE
OverviewLeadershipBlogJoVE Help Center
AUTHORS
Publishing ProcessEditorial BoardScope & PoliciesPeer ReviewFAQSubmit
LIBRARIANS
TestimonialsSubscriptionsAccessResourcesLibrary Advisory BoardFAQ
RESEARCH
JoVE JournalMethods CollectionsJoVE Encyclopedia of ExperimentsArchive
EDUCATION
JoVE CoreJoVE BusinessJoVE Science EducationJoVE Lab ManualFaculty Resource CenterFaculty Site
Terms & Conditions of Use
Privacy Policy
Policies

Related Experiment Videos

The origin of cellular life.

D E Ingber1

  • 1Departments of Pathology and Surgery, Children's Hospital and Harvard Medical School, Boston, MA 02115, USA.

Bioessays : News and Reviews in Molecular, Cellular and Developmental Biology
|November 21, 2000
PubMed
Summary

The origin of life may be explained by tensegrity architecture, a mechanical principle guiding self-assembly from simple elements into complex, reproducing cells. This principle reveals molecular scaffolds as ancient "living microfossils".

Related Concept Videos

You might also read

Related Articles

Articles linked to this work by shared authors, journal, and citation graph.

Sort by
Same author

Epithelial-Stromal Interactions in Barrett's Esophagus Modeled in Human Organ Chips.

Gastro hep advances·2024
Same author

Emerging preclinical evidence does not support broad use of hydroxychloroquine in COVID-19 patients.

Nature communications·2020
Same author

Primary Human Lung Alveolus-on-a-chip Model of Intravascular Thrombosis for Assessment of Therapeutics.

Clinical pharmacology and therapeutics·2017
Same author

Rapid Isolation of Staphylococcus aureus Pathogens from Infected Clinical Samples Using Magnetic Beads Coated with Fc-Mannose Binding Lectin.

PloS one·2016
Same author

Activation of mechanosensitive ion channel TRPV4 normalizes tumor vasculature and improves cancer therapy.

Oncogene·2015
Same author

The mechanochemical basis of cell and tissue regulation.

Mechanics & chemistry of biosystems : MCB·2006

Area of Science:

  • Biophysics
  • Origin of Life Research
  • Cellular Mechanics

Background:

  • Cells utilize tensegrity architecture for mechanical stabilization.
  • Hierarchical self-assembly follows tensegrity principles across all scales.
  • Modern cellular scaffolds may be remnants of early life forms.

Purpose of the Study:

  • To propose a scenario for the origin of life based on microstructural analysis.
  • To investigate the role of architectural and energetic constraints in early cell evolution.
  • To identify molecular scaffolds as potential 'living microfossils'.

Main Methods:

  • Analysis of biological architecture and mechanical design at the microstructural level.
  • Integration of tensegrity principles with other fundamental design concepts (e.g., energy minimization, autocatalytic sets).
Keywords:
NASA Discipline Cell BiologyNon-NASA Center

Related Experiment Videos

  • Examination of hierarchical self-assembly processes.

    • Main Results:

    • Tensegrity architecture provides a physical basis for the self-assembly of atomic and molecular elements.
    • This process leads to the formation of hierarchical structures with increasing complexity.
    • The evolution of self-reproducing living cells is explained through these principles.

    Conclusions:

    • The same constraints shaping modern cells also guided the evolution of the first cells.
    • Tensegrity architecture offers a unifying framework for understanding life's origins.
    • Molecular scaffolds serve as evidence of past life forms and evolutionary processes.