Biologists on the Verge of Creating New Form of Life

A team of biologists and chemists is close to bringing non-living matter to life.

A lab led by a Harvard Medical School molecular biologist is building simple cell models that can almost be called life. The protocells are built from fatty molecules that can trap bits of nucleic acids that contain the source code for replication. Combined with a process that harnesses external energy from the sun or chemical reactions, they could form a self-replicating, evolving system that satisfies the conditions of life, but isn't anything like life on earth now, but might represent life as it began or could exist elsewhere in the universe. The replication isn't wholly autonomous, so it's not quite artificial life yet, but it is as close as anyone has ever come to turning chemicals into biological organisms.

The below video shows a protocell forming from fatty acids:



Original article here.