This story is part of a larger series on viroids and virusoids, small infectious RNAs. It is also the fifth installment in a series on hepatitis D virus, a virusoid-like pathogen that causes serious ...

Researchers at the University of Tokyo have created an RNA molecule that can not just replicate, but “evolve” into a diverse range of more complex molecules. This find could plug a major gap in the ...

Liquid brine veins, where RNA molecules can replicate, surround solid ice crystals in water ice, as seen with an electron microscope. Chemists at UCL and the MRC Laboratory of Molecular Biology have ...

Scientists have long pondered the beginnings of life on Earth. One theory is that RNA, which is ubiquitous across all domains of life, played a central role in early life. Similar to DNA, RNA ...

Chemists at UCL and the MRC Laboratory of Molecular Biology have demonstrated how RNA (ribonucleic acid) might have replicated itself on early Earth – a key process in the origin of life. Scientists ...

Chemists at UCL and the MRC Laboratory of Molecular Biology have demonstrated how RNA (ribonucleic acid) might have replicated itself on early Earth—a key process in the origin of life. Scientists ...

"Hearst Magazines and Yahoo may earn commission or revenue on some items through these links." For 400 million years, a leading hypothesis claims, Earth was an “RNA World,” meaning that life must’ve ...

For 400 million years, a leading hypothesis claims, Earth was an “RNA World,” meaning that life must’ve first replicated from RNA before the arrival of proteins and DNA. Unfortunately, scientists have ...

RNA is usually portrayed as a molecule that works deep inside the cell, helping to turn genetic information into proteins. But new research led by Utrecht University scientist Jack Li shows that RNA ...