WE ARE ALL DESIGNIST NOW:

A genetically modified yeast containing an endosymbiotic bacterium. Credit: Scripps Research

Scientists at Scripps Research and their collaborators have created microorganisms that may recapitulate key features of organisms thought to have lived billions of years ago, allowing them to explore questions about how life evolved from inanimate molecules to single-celled organisms to the complex, multicellular lifeforms we see today.

By studying one of these engineered organisms-a bacterium whose genome consists of both ribonucleic acid (RNA) and deoxyribonucleic acid (DNA)-the scientists hope to shed light on the early evolution of genetic material, including the theorized transition from a world where most life relied solely on the genetic molecule RNA to one where DNA serves as the primary storehouse of genetic information.

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