Our Origin-of-Life research focuses on probing the transition between geo- and bio-chemistry, and on unveiling the universal laws of living systems. On the planetary science side, we focus on refining life detection strategies for the exploration of the Solar System and on advancing technologies for human space habitation. We are experts at tackling interdisciplinary ideas, simulating extreme conditions in the lab, and marrying mathematical modeling with experimental research. For a complete list of our publications, please check Google Scholar. You can read more about our current projects below.

Our sponsors

Our research endeavors would not be possible without the support from our sponsors.

Active awards

NASA MUREP ESSR: VITAL – Virtual Institute for Temporal and Additive Learning – $1,200,000

Research Initiation Awards: Understanding Europa’s surficial chemistry – A window to its ocean – $299,246

Active awards

NSF BRC-BIO: Building a cell – Coupling amphiphile prebiotic chemistry to protocell heredity – $502,983

Active awards

USDA NIFA: Catalytic isomerization of galactose from acid whey into low-calorie tagatose – $299,672

Past awards

The University of Texas System: Science and Technology Acquisition and Retention (STARs) award – $300,000

Current/Ongoing Projects

1. Non-enzymatic polymerization

_{High-pressure microfluidic setup to simulate submarine hydrothermal systems.}

_{High-pressure microfluidic chip where we carry out vectorial prebiotic chemistry.}

This research involves experimenting with non-enzymatic polymerization of monomers (e.g., nucleotides) under aqueous conditions. While past research suggests this process unfavorable, it occurs easily in cells via chemical activation and enzymatic catalysis. We are investigating an analogous abiotic mechanism for RNA oligomerization by examining the catalytic properties of FeS minerals. Iron sulfide minerals are known to promote a range of prebiotic reactions and existed in hydrothermal systems during the Hadean eon (4 billion years ago). We wonder if the natural pH and redox gradients found at hydrothermal systems can be tapped as a source fo energy for the complexification of organics. We simulate these conditions using microfluidics, allowing a precise control over reaction parameters and enabling vectorial (i.e., directional) chemistry.

Currently working on this research: Mahendran Sithamparam

2. Nanoparticle-based sensor for respirable lunar dust

_{Photographic evidence of (A) As-Synthesized Product and (B+C) Magnetic Separation.}

_{X-ray diffraction patterns of lunar regolith simulants. Comparative analysis of LHS-1D (lunar Highlands) and LMS-1D (lunar Mare).}

This research focuses on the development of an iron nanoparticle-based chemical sensor designed for non-invasive astronaut health monitoring during NASA’s Artemis IV mission. The project addresses the critical need for a diagnostic tool capable of detecting reactive lunar regolith dust, a highly abrasive and magnetic contaminant, within biological fluids like saliva before it induces respiratory or ocular damage. Our current approach involves the co-precipitation synthesis of superparamagnetic magnetite (Fe₃O₄) nanoparticles, with crystallite sizes successfully optimized between 6-12 nm. A key technical milestone is the surface modification of these nanoparticles with tetraethyl orthosilicate (TEOS) to create a SiO₂ capping layer. This silica shell is essential for preventing the magnetic iron core from quenching the fluorescence of Rhodamine B, the ligand selected for the selective sensing of “headliner” lunar elements. Using a multi-analytical suite including XRD, XPS, and UV-Vis spectroscopy, we have confirmed high phase purity and the mixed-valence structure of our synthesized materials. Future phases of the project will evaluate the sensor’s selectivity and stability through simulated lunar regolith testing, ultimately providing a safeguard for human fieldwork and lunar base construction.

Currently working on this research: Mauricio Berazaluce

3. Heredity and evolution in protocells

_{We study the composition of vesicle populations using a variety of fluorescent dyes to visualize the aqueous interior vs fatty membranes.}

_{We study the composition of individual vesicles using specialized microfluidic chips.}

Research has unveiled cell components, yet their origins and assembly remain mysteries. The gene-centric ‘RNA World’ hypothesis for the origin of life has been historically pivotal, suggesting life began with a self-replicating RNA molecule and all other biological functions followed. This hypothesis highlights the need for an hereditary mechanism, a required aspect for evolution across generations. An alternative, the ‘metabolism-first’, hypothesis proposes life started from autocatalytic reaction networks, instead of a singular RNA molecule. These networks, increasing in concentration collectively, might have enabled the first replicators to pass on compositional information to their descendants. This information includes the molecular makeup of amphiphile-based membranes, suggesting a primitive form of inheritance based solely on composition before genetic polymers became the primary information carriers (where information is both composition- as well as sequence-based). This project explores how self-assembling lipids might have driven the reproduction of early prebiotic systems and assesses the limits of heredity in vesicle-based protocells. Our approach merges mathematical modeling, micro- and nanofluidics, and confocal microscopy and analytical chemistry techniques. Our findings, which include an image-recognition algorithm for vesicle analysis, aim to illuminate the early stages of biological evolution and Darwinian principles before genes.

Currently working on this research: Myrine Barreiro-Arevalo, Kiara Perez, Shelby Lopez, Nolan Salinas

4. Boreas: planetary simulations

This project involves utilizing a closed environment ultra-high vacuum system to study the surficial chemistry of Jupiter’s moon Europa and other water-containing worlds. The planetary simulator, Boreas, uses cryogenic techniques to replicate the extreme environment at Europa (near vacuum, -190°C, high UV irradiation).

We are providing the system with organics and complimentary inorganics (e.g., salts, silicates from chondrites), each reflecting our current understanding of Europa’s surface chemistry, depending on whether they are accretionary materials, from de novo synthesis, or from exogenous delivery. The surface maturation of these materials is monitored via a residual gas analyzer mass spectrometer, and a series of offline analyses including Raman spectroscopy and nuclear magnetic resonance. Our goal is to generate a chemical roadmap of Europa’s surface, linking real-world mission detections (e.g, by Europa Clipper) of matured organics to their original starting materials, thereby determining their origins.

Currently working on this research: Ilankuzhali Elavarasan, Andrea Aldaba, Dulce Castillo, Pau Grèbol-Tomàs

5. Evolution of organics on Mars

_{Deepali Singh collecting samples on an evaporitic locale.}

_{Simulating the Martian surface in the lab.}

In this project we aim to expose organics to combinations of temperature, pressure, radiation, and mineral matrices to investigate how they degrade, transform, or persist over time. These experiments aim to uncover the chemical resilience of potential biosignatures and their survivability under Mars-like conditions.

Through laboratory simulations, we seek to bridge the gap between detected organics on Mars and their possible precursors or degradation products. This work supports the interpretation of current and future mission data, especially from instruments targeting organic compounds. It also informs how such molecules may be preserved in Earth environments which are reminiscent to ancient Mars (such as the currently drying Rio Grande Valley), offering comparative insights into the past, present, and possibily future habitability of both planets.

Currently working on this research: Deepali Singh, Mauricio Berazaluce

6. From thioesters to amphiphiles prebiotically

_{The electrochemical fuel cell allow us to measure the redox potentials for a wide range of reactions that yield thiolated compounds.}

The only conserved CO₂-fixation pathway in both the archaea and bacteria domains is the Wood-Ljungdahl pathway. This metabolic pathway is significant for its use of oxygen-sensitive enzymes and the direct synthesis of acetyl-CoA – the hub of metabolism – from the simple precursors CO₂ and H₂. Thioesters – such as acetyl-CoA – are deeply embedded in metabolism, so much so that the universality of S-based chemistry has been proposed to be remnant of the critical role they played in the protometabolic networks leading to the first living entity.

This project seeks to bridge the gap between biological and geochemical processes by simulating alkaline hydrothermal vent chemistry under anoxic conditions. Electrochemical cells are being used to simulate the physical separation between the oxidation and reduction of H₂ and CO₂, respectively. We are also using high-pressure microfluidics to study the polymerization of S-bearing molecules into amphiphiles capable of spontaneously forming vesicle compartments.

Currently working on this research: Mahendran Sithamparam, Kaelyn Calma