Biomolecules, as physical systems, are distinct molecular entities synthesized or utilized by living organisms that exhibit specific structural, thermodynamic, and dynamical properties enabling biological function. They include nucleic acids, proteins, lipids, carbohydrates, and diverse metabolites, each characterized by defined covalent connectivity, three-dimensional conformations, and interaction potentials with solvents, ions, and other biomolecules. Their behavior is governed by quantum-mechanical bonding, classical electrostatics, and statistical thermodynamics, leading to emergent phenomena such as self-assembly, allostery, enzyme catalysis, and molecular recognition. In physical systems research, biomolecules are studied through techniques like spectroscopy, crystallography, cryo-EM, and molecular simulations to elucidate structure–function relationships and energy landscapes.
Astronomers use the term dark energy to refer to energy in the universe that is unaccounted for by ordinary matter but necessary to explain cosmology. Astronomy, however, isn't the only field with missing energy. Rice University ...
Evolution
Jan 27, 2026
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A single enzyme that can generate all four nucleoside triphosphates, the building blocks of ribonucleic acid (RNA), has been identified by researchers at the Institute of Science Tokyo. The study was published online in the ...
Biotechnology
Jan 22, 2026
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A research team led by the University of Oxford's Department of Engineering Science has shown it is possible to engineer a quantum mechanical process inside proteins, opening the door to a new class of quantum-enabled biological ...
Biotechnology
Jan 21, 2026
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Challenging long-held assumptions, Aarhus University researchers have demonstrated that the protein building blocks essential for life as we know it can form readily in space. This discovery, appearing in Nature Astronomy, ...
Astrobiology
Jan 20, 2026
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Scientists at the Nano Life Science Institute (WPI-NanoLSI), Kanazawa University, have captured real-time images showing how a key brain enzyme organizes itself to help memory formation.
Bio & Medicine
Jan 12, 2026
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In addition to providing energy, lipids are also essential building blocks of our cell membranes. However, despite their importance, they remain poorly understood.
Cell & Microbiology
Jan 8, 2026
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Proteins are among the most important molecular building blocks of life. They are chains of amino acids assembled in our cells by ribosomes, the molecular "protein factories" of our bodies. The genetic code of our genome ...
Cell & Microbiology
Dec 22, 2025
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The transition from simple chemistry to the complex biology of molecules that gave rise to life is a puzzle that scientists have been trying to solve for ages.
It's a common storytelling trope: the stubborn foe who is eventually revealed to be a much-needed friend. Biology has its own version. Cornell researchers have discovered that DNA packaging structures called nucleosomes, ...
Cell & Microbiology
Dec 19, 2025
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59
Liquids and solutions are complex environments—think, for example, of sugar dissolving in water, where each sugar molecule becomes surrounded by a restless crowd of water molecules. Inside living cells, the picture is even ...
Optics & Photonics
Dec 14, 2025
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