Introduction to Life Science

The Evolving Concept of Life

is a science that deals with all forms of life,
including their classification, physiology,
chemistry, and interactions.

The term was introduced in Germany in 1800

and popularized by the French naturalist

as a means of encompassing the growing

number of disciplines involved with the study
of living forms.
 Theory of Special
creation
in accordance with the Book of
Genesis, that every species was
individually created by God in
the form in which it exists today
and is not capable of undergoing
any change
Cosmozoic Theory
Cosmozoic
the idea proposed by Richter in 1865 and
supported by Arrhenius (1908).
Theory
According to this theory, life has reached the
planet Earth from other heavenly bodies such as
meteorites, in the form of highly resistant spores
of some microorganisms. The spores of some
microorganisms are called cosmozoa or panspermia
because they are preserved inside meteorites
coming to the earth from the outer space. These
meteorites struck the barren earth to release the
cosmozoa and they developed into different
creatures on the earth.
Theory of Spontaneous
Generation also known as
Abiogenesis, the idea that
life arose from nonlife
more than 3.5 billion years
ago on Earth. Abiogenesis
proposes that the first life-
forms generated were very
simple and through a
gradual process became
increasingly complex.
Biogenesis Theory

Life is derived from the

reproduction of other
life, was presumably
preceded by abiogenesis,
which became impossible
once Earth’s atmosphere
assumed its present
composition.
Primordial Soup Theory

It refers to the ocean of organic

molecules that existed on Earth billions
of years ago. This soup of life contained
essential building blocks such as amino
acids and nucleotides. Through a series
of chemical reactions and energy
sources, this chaotic mixture gave rise to
the first simple life forms.
Coacervate theory

it is expressed by the Russian

biochemist A.I. Oparin in 1936
suggesting that the origin of life
was preceded by the formation of
mixed colloidal units called
coacervates. These are particles
composed of two or more colloids
which might be protein, lipid or
nucleic acid. He proposed that while
these molecules were not living, they
behaved like biological systems in
the ancient seas. They were subject
to natural selection in terms of
constant size and chemical
properties, there was a selective
accumulation of material, and they
reproduced by fragmentation.
Miller-Urey hypothesis

The first hypothesis where lightning could have

operated the synthesis reactions in the Earth’s early
atmosphere was tested by in 1953. It provided the first
evidence that organic molecules needed for life could
be formed from inorganic components. Some scientists
support the RNA world hypothesis, which suggests that
the first life was self-replicating RNA
Fossil Evidence

• Fossil evidence indicates that life

on Earth appeared about 3.5
billion years ago in the ocean
• Provided protection from
Ultraviolet (UV) rays
• Allowed multidirectional
movement
• Served as a medium for essential
chemical reactions.
• Anaerobic prokaryotes
Early Forms
• The first forms of life are believed to have appeared some 3.5 billion years ago.
• Photosynthetic organisms are organisms who make their own food by utilizing
the energy from the sun and the carbon dioxide in the atmosphere. The process

of Life
of photosynthesis produced more oxygen that changed the Earth’s early
atmosphere, allowed oxygen-breathing organisms to exist.
• Cyanobacteria (blue-green algae) are the first photosynthetic organisms to
form.