microspheres
Microscopic, firm spherules which form on the cooling of hot saturated solutions
of proteinoids. They were first reported
in 1959 by Sidney Fox, K. Harada, and J. Kendrick
who proposed that microspheres might represent a significant early stage
in precellular evolution. It has been suggested that their greater stability
makes them a better proposition in this regard than coacervates.
One milligram of proteinoid can yield 100 million microspheres, ranging
from 1.4 to about 2.5 microns in diameter. Microspheres have been observed
to retain their form for several weeks and, when sectioned, may display
a double-walled structure. Recently, Fox argued that microspheres also display
characteristics of primitive nerve cells.
Related category
• ORIGIN
AND EVOLUTION OF LIFE
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