Chemistry
The RNA world
Article
The RNA world by Sidney Altman1989 Nobel Prize laureate in chemistry The phrase “The RNA World” was coined by in 1986 in a commentary on the then recent observations of the catalytic properties of various RNAs. The RNA World referred to an hypothetical stage in the origin of life on Earth. During this stage, proteins…
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The history of biocatalysis
1835 The Swede Jöns Jacob Berzelius describes a catalyst as a substance which can breathe life into slumbering chemical reactions. 1868 Friedrich Miescher, Switzerland isolates nucleic acids from white blood cells obtained from discarded bandages. 1877 Wilhelm Kuhne, Germany introduces the term “enzyme” and distinguishes between enzymes and bacteria. 1893 Wilhelm Ostwald, Latvia classifies enzymes…
moreCredits
The Nobel Prize in Chemistry 2005 Editors: Per Ahlberg, Member of the Nobel Committee for Chemistry, Per I. Arvidsson, Uppsala University, Jonas Förare, Eva Krutmeijer and Malin Lindgren, The Royal Swedish Academy of Sciences. Layout and Illustrations: Typoform Printing: Katarinatryck AB, 2005 Copyright © The Royal Swedish Academy of Sciences, 2005 P.O. Box…
moreNature is chiral
The Nobel Prize in Chemistry 2001 The word chiral derives from the Greek word ceir (cheir), meaning hand. Our hands are chiral – the right hand is a mirror image of the left – as are most of life’s molecules such as (R)-alanine and (S)-alanine,…
moreThomas R. Cech – Article
Article
Exploring the new RNA world by Thomas R. Cech1989 Nobel Prize laureate in chemistry This article was published on 3 December 2004. Not too long ago, most people considered RNA to be just a disposable copy of the really important nucleic acid, DNA. It is the double helix of DNA, after all, that shows up…
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