They find ethanolamine in space, a key molecule at the origin of life.

What is the origin of life? There are several theories, although few are accepted, but it seems that the “mystery” of our origin (and that of everything) now centers on a newly found molecule that has revolutionized science. It is ethanolamine, of which we offer you all the details below. They find ethanolamine in space, a key molecule at the origin of life. An organic molecule has been found in the center of the Milky Way, one of the pillars of life and, above all, a clue that seems essential for us to finally understand the origin of life. The result is published in the journal of the American National Academy of Sciences (PNAS) by the group of the Madrid Astrobiology Center (CAB, INTA-CSIC) coordinated by Víctor Rivilla. The molecule, called ethanolamine, was identified within the molecular cloud G + 0.693-0.027, in the heart of our galaxy, thanks to the Iram (Institute of Millimeter Radio Astronomy) and Yebes radio telescopes, both in Spain. Apparently, the molecule that has been found would be important for the formation of cell membranes that separate the external and internal aqueous environment of cells.According to experts, this organic molecule, like other life-precursor compounds, may have been incorporated into the primitive Earth, as well as the meteorites, where it had been found until now. According to Rivilla, at the head of the study, the molecules that have been found do not stop moving when they are in space. This movement causes the emission of photons at a certain frequency. “We have detected 14 frequencies that are clear and unequivocal of the presence of ethanolamine,” he says.”The study gives us an idea of what can happen in space before a planetary system is formed,” John Brucato, from the Arcetri Observatory of the National Institute of Astrophysics (INAF) in Florence, Italy, explained to ANSA. It is important to understand whether the genetic, metabolic, or cell membrane was formed first. If the latter option prevails, then it is likely that the cell formed first and only second did enzymes and genetic molecules appear. Presumably more studies will be needed to validate this theoretical line, but the discovery of the organic molecule in space already embodies going one step further with respect to those that humanity had stumbled upon until now, useful in deciphering the mystery of life.