5184 – The Molecular Origins of Life I

Organizational issues: lecture Thu./Do. 11:30-13:00 HSII, Geb. 30.41 Flachbau Chemie (ab/from 23.04.2026, 7 lecture units).

Lecture in hybrid format, participants can join on-site or online

Zoom link:
https://us06web.zoom.us/j/81367579862?pwd=xfbLphstpLA1qKARUY0qjLfcHh8QGw.1
Meeting ID: 813 6757 9862
Access code: 3fuxcs

First lecture: 23. Apr. 2026, 7 lecture units: 30.04., 07.05., (one week break/holiday), 21.05., (two weeks break/holidays) 11.06., 18.06., 25.06. (backup term 02.07.)

the lecture slides will be available for download shortly before the respective lecture.

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Following topics will be discussed:

Definitions of life – e.g. self-replicating chemical systems that use external energy sources to stay out of the equilibrium;

The origins of atoms and simple molecules - how the Universe, stars, planets, and molecules building them were formed?

Minimal requirements for a habitable environment – under which conditions the known forms of life can exist? Hypothetical other chemistries that could form living systems elsewhere;

The primordial soup – what pool of biologically relevant molecules likely existed on the prebiotic Earth: the Miller-Urey experiment, the formose reaction, prebiotic syntheses of aminoacids, sugars, nucleic acids, nucleotides, and lipids, prebiotic polymerization;

The origins of life – self-replicating systems, metabolism-first vs. gene-first, the “RNA world”, the origins of homochirality;

Formation of protocells – enhancing RNA with polypeptides, establishment of the genetic code, DNA as the enhanced information storage, metabolic networks, membranes;

From molecules to cells – LUCA (Last Universal Common Ancestor), information storage and function – split on different molecules, origins of the genetic code, metabolic networks and lipid membranes;

The history of life on Earth – timeline for LUCA, beginning of photosynthesis and aerobic metabolism, Eukaryotes, multicellular life, extremophilic organisms, habitable worlds outside Earth – current status of knowledge, space exploration programs;

Zbigniew Pianowski

Bachelor & Master

1

23. Apr 2026

2. Jul 2026

Vorlesung

Wahlpflichtfach

HS II, Geb. 30.41 Flachbau Chemie

Do. 11:30-13:00

wöchtl.

Deutsch

All rights reserved

Zbigniew Pianowski

pianowski@kit.edu

Unbegrenzt – wenn online geschaltet

Sie müssen einen Aufnahmeantrag stellen, um in den Kurs aufgenommen zu werden. Beschreiben Sie im Feld Nachricht, warum Sie beitreten möchten. Sobald Ihr Antrag angenommen oder abgelehnt wurde, erhalten Sie eine Benachrichtigung.

Unbegrenzt

23. Apr 2026 - 23. Jul 2026

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