The origin of the language of life
Friday, December 19, 2014 - 09:00
in Biology & Nature
The genetic code is the universal language of life. It describes how information is encoded in the genetic material and is the same for all organisms from simple bacteria to animals to humans. However, the origin of the code remains enigmatic. Over the past two years, the research team of Bojan Žagrović at the Max F. Perutz Laboratories (MFPL) of the University of Vienna and the Medical University of Vienna has revealed several surprising clues that may help unlock this mystery. The results are described in a series of articles – the latest was published in December in Nucleic Acids Research.