Emergent Rhythmicity in Proteinoid-BZ Hybrid Systems

Abstract

The emergence of life required the coupling of metabolism, structure, and heredity within self-organizing chemical systems. We show that thermal proteinoid microspheres, made from amino acids (Glu, Asp, Lys) at 170 °C, connect with the Belousov−Zhabotinsky (BZ) reaction. This creates stable, self-reproducing hybrid systems that display basic computational abilities. Scanning electron microscopy shows that BZ-proteinoid microspheres have unique spherical and polygonal morphologies (0.5−1.5 μm) and internal compartments. This is different from the spherical shape of pure proteinoids (1−5 μm). Electrochemical monitoring with multi-electrode arrays (Pt/Ir, 10 mm spacing) shows that adding proteinoids increases potential amplitude by ∼3.3 times, reaching maxima of 319.9 mV (vs 97.7 mV for pure BZ). It also stabilizes high-voltage states. This reduces Shannon entropy to H = 0.010 bits, a drop of 98.7% from pure BZ (H = 0.754 bits). Boolean logic analysis shows a strong AND-gate coincidence (ρAND = 0.783) between control and hybrid channels. Also, the state transition network topology shows a 29% drop in outgoing entropy (ΔH = −0.062 bits). This indicates that the pathways are becoming more stable. Cyclic voltammetry shows memristive behavior and a 16-fold increase in peak current (±25 μA vs ± 1.5 μA). It demonstrates conductance increase over 100 cycles, energy loss with hysteresis, and the ability to store multiple bits of data. Hybrid microspheres reproduce in two ways: asymmetric budding and binary fission. They pass on their membrane structure and oscillatory behavior to their daughter cells. This shows a form of proto-heredity. The system maintains electrochemical coherence at pH 1.72, consistent with acidic prebiotic environments. These findings show that BZ-proteinoid hybrids are basic models for protocellular computation. They combine oscillating chemistry with compartmentalized structures. This leads to lasting, heritable information processing without needing genetic templates. The work suggests that rhythmic, membrane-bounded systems may have preceded template-based replication in the origin of cellular life.