I investigate how the earliest signs of life are preserved in the rock record and how microbial life could have originated in silica-rich hydrothermal environments (e.g., hot springs) on early Earth. To do this, I recreate hot‑spring conditions in the laboratory and test the preservation of specific organic compounds, including prebiotic molecules.
Reconstructing the emergence and nature of Earth’s first microbial ecosystems is central not only to understanding the history of life on Earth but also to the search for life beyond our planet.
Keywords
origin of life, biomarkers, hot springs, Archean, Precambrian
Researchinterest
I am interested in how the first microbes could have arisen in silica‑rich terrestrial hot springs on early Earth and how traces of that life—biosignatures such as chemical, structural, or isotopic clues—are preserved in rocks.
Multiple lines of evidence point to silica‑rich hot springs as promising locations for life’s beginnings. My research focuses on how (prebiotic) organic compounds are incorporated in silica precipitates of such environments. I work with polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbons (PAHs) and complex macromolecular organic films, conducting experiments at high temperatures and pressures with silica as the matrix. Besides I study not only the preservation of these compounds I also the gases produced, the morphological features that form in the silica, and various isotopic signatures that remain.
Currenttopic
PROTOS - The role of silica in the dawn of life on our planet
An artist’s vision of the Hadean era, the geochemical scenario of the origin of life that PROTOS will study / Artist: Lucas Chacón, CSIC
The first 600 million years of Earth’s history, known as the Hadean, are a mystery. No geological record exists. This enigma has driven scientists to computational models and sparse laboratory simulations to piece together our planet's earliest conditions and the origins of life. In this context, the ERC-funded PROTOS project aims to revolutionize our understanding of this primordial epoch. PROTOS focuses on recreating Hadean environments through innovative laboratory experiments. By scrutinizing reactions between water, gases, and ancient rock types, PROTOS focuses on the role of silica in the origins of early life-supporting habitats and the genesis and preservation of organic compounds crucial to life’s emergence. This pioneering effort promises to unveil critical insights into Earth’s infancy.