Early Earth life depends on molybdenum and tungsten 3.4 billion years ago
Updated
Updated · BIOENGINEER.ORG · May 5
Early Earth life depends on molybdenum and tungsten 3.4 billion years ago
8 articles · Updated · BIOENGINEER.ORG · May 5
University of Wisconsin–Madison researchers report in Nature Communications that cells were already transporting and using both metals despite molybdenum's scarcity on the young Earth.
The study says molybdenum's catalytic role, including in nitrogen-fixing enzymes, likely gave early organisms a strong evolutionary advantage, while tungsten points to parallel use of alternative metal cofactors.
Building on earlier evidence from the Archean era, the findings challenge assumptions about element scarcity and could reshape astrobiology by broadening which chemical biosignatures scientists seek on other planets.
Life thrived on a rare metal 3 billion years ago. What other 'impossible' chemistries could power alien worlds?
If early Earth had other metals, why did life bet its future on the incredibly scarce molybdenum?
Early Life’s Metal Cofactors: Molybdenum and Tungsten Enzymes Dating Back 3.7 Billion Years
Overview
New research reveals that early microbes incorporated both molybdenum and tungsten into enzymes as far back as 3.7 billion years ago, challenging the idea that tungsten alone dominated early biochemistry. Despite molybdenum's scarcity in anoxic oceans, microbes evolved specialized transport systems to scavenge it, supported by localized hydrothermal vents that concentrated these metals. This dual metal use provided key metabolic advantages in processing carbon, nitrogen, and sulfur. The Great Oxidation Event later increased molybdenum availability, driving further microbial adaptations. These insights are reshaping astrobiology, guiding missions like NASA's Europa Clipper to search for metal-based biosignatures in extraterrestrial oceans.