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Capsule formation induced by flow.
Shunsuke Ito1, Shigeru Sakurazawa2
1Future University Hakodate, 116-2, nakano-cho kameda, Hakodate, 041-8655, Hokkaido, Japan.
Bio Systems
|February 7, 2024
Summary
Proteinoid microspheres form microcapsules through a flow-induced process, offering a primitive model for early life's physical compartments. This mechanism requires both dissolution and flow, not just heat or flow alone.
Area of Science:
- Origin of Life Studies
- Biophysics
- Materials Science
Background:
- Physical compartments are crucial for life's emergence.
- Lipid vesicles are considered cell membrane precursors.
- Proteinoids, formed from amino acid polymerization, self-assemble into microspheres.
Purpose of the Study:
- To investigate the mechanism of microcapsule formation from proteinoid microspheres.
- To test the hypothesis that capsule formation involves the interplay of dissolution and flow.
- To propose proteinoid microspheres as a primitive model for early life compartments.
Main Methods:
- Proteinoid microspheres (PM) were subjected to forced flow under controlled conditions.
- Capsule formation was observed and analyzed.
- The role of heat and flow independently was assessed.
Main Results:
- Neither heat nor flow alone induced capsule formation.
- Capsule formation was observed only when both dissolution and flow were present.
- This confirms the hypothesis regarding the interplay of dissolution and flow.
Conclusions:
- Flow-induced capsule formation from proteinoid microspheres is a general phenomenon.
- This process presents a plausible model for the origin of physical compartments in early life.
- Proteinoid-based compartments offer a simpler alternative to lipid vesicles as early life precursors.
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