Alamgir Karim was instrumental in the new discovery. Photo Courtesy of University of Houston Office of Media Relations

A flask of Houston’s rain helped answer a long-running question about the origin of cellular life.

The solution is proposed by two University of Houston scientists, William A. Brookshire Department of Chemical Engineering (UH ChBE) former grad student Aman Agrawal (now a postdoctoral researcher at University of Chicago’s Pritzker School of Molecular Engineering) and Alamgir Karim, UH Dow Chair and Welch Foundation Professor of chemical and biomolecular engineering, and director of both the International Polymer & Soft Matter Center and the Materials Engineering Program at UH. They were joined by UChicago PME Dean Emeritus Matthew Tirrell and Nobel Prize-winning biologist Jack Szostak in an article published last week in Scientific Advances.

For two decades, scientists like Szostak have hypothesized that RNA fragments were the first components of life to form in the Earth’s primordial seas 3.8 million years ago. Although DNA is an essential component of cellular life, it can’t fold proteins, making it unlikely to be the initial starting point. Since RNA can fold proteins, it could have been the catalyst for cellular growth and evolution.

The problem is that seawater molecules allow RNA to bond and change too quickly, often within minutes. Rapid dissipation means no segregation of material, and thus no evolution. Szostak himself proved in 2014 that regular seawater doesn’t allow RNA fragments to form the membranes necessary for cellular life.

Then along comes Agrawal. He wasn’t looking into the origin of life. He was an engineer studying the properties of complex liquids for his doctorate. Karim was his thesis adviser and introduced Agrawal to Tirrell, who brought up the RNA problem over a lunch and some theories about how if the water was distilled it may have solved it. Where would you get distilled water 3.8 billion years ago?

“I spontaneously said ‘rainwater,’” says Karim. “His eyes lit up and he was very excited at the suggestion. So, you can say it was a spontaneous combustion of ideas or ideation.”

Using RNA samples from Szostak, they saw that distilled water increased the differences in exchange rate between samples from minutes to days, long enough for the RNA to begin mutation.

Distilled lab water is nothing like prehistoric rain, though. Luckily, a typical Houston downpour occurred during the research. Agrawal and fellow UH graduate student, Anusha Vonteddu ran outside with beakers to collect some. The samples again formed meshy walls, separating the RNA and possibly showing how life began from these fragments billions of years ago.

“The molecules we used to build these protocells are just models until more suitable molecules can be found as substitutes,” Agrawal said. “While the chemistry would be a little bit different, the physics will remain the same.”

------

This article originally ran on CultureMap.

Ad Placement 300x100
Ad Placement 300x600

CultureMap Emails are Awesome

Digital Health Institute's new exec director aims to lead innovation and commercialization efforts

new hire

Though our existences have become deeply entangled with technology, our health has been slower to catch up. The creation late last year of the Digital Health Institute was a major step into the future for both Rice University and Houston Methodist, for whom the institute is a joint venture.

The latest news for the Digital Health Institute is the appointment of Pothik Chatterjee to the role of executive director.

“The Digital Health Institute’s collaborative model is uniquely powerful,” Chatterjee told Rice University’s office of media relations. “By bringing together clinicians, engineers and entrepreneurs, we’re building an ecosystem designed to transform how care is delivered and experienced.”

Chatterjee’s role is to help grow the collaboration between the institutions, but the Digital Health Institute already boasts more than 20 active projects, each of which pairs Rice faculty and Methodist clinicians.

“Research is great, but what we really want at the Digital Health Institute is to translate those research findings into products and services that can be used at the patient's bedside,” Chatterjee explained to InnovationMap.

Once the research is in place, it’s up to Chatterjee to find commercial opportunities within the research portfolio. Those include everything from hospital-grade medical imaging wearables to the creation of digital twins for patients to help better treat them.

“As we move from vision to execution, Pothik’s expertise will be essential in helping us strengthen the institutional alignment needed to deliver at scale,” Dr. Khurram Nasir, Methodist’s William A. Zoghbi Centennial Chair in Cardiovascular Medicine and division chief of cardiovascular prevention and wellness, told Rice. “From my vantage point of a health system, the real value lies not just in innovation, but in implementation.”

Nasir’s co-founder is Ashutosh Sabharwal, Rice’s Ernest Dell Butcher Professor of Engineering and professor of electrical and computer engineering.

“The Digital Health Institute is a key step toward advancing health and health care for the benefit of humanity,” Sabharwal said. “We’re thrilled to welcome Pothik to our growing team. His background in health care innovation, research administration and venture investing will be instrumental in translating cutting-edge research into impactful digital health solutions. From leading innovation strategy and forging strong partnerships to driving fundraising and grant development, his leadership will help shape the institute’s long-term success.”

Though Chatterjee has previously worked around the country, including in Boston and Baltimore, he says he believes Houston is uniquely positioned to thrive in the digital health space.

“Houston is the best place to do it, because we have Rice and Houston Methodist,” he told InnovationMap. “[People] want to help keep that innovation in Houston, not just send it off to Silicon Valley or New York or Boston. There seems to be a lot of appetite from the philanthropic community to have homegrown Houston digital health innovation.”

Reliant’s smart new bundle puts energy savings + insights into one app

Two companies known for innovation in energy and home automation, Reliant and Vivint, have teamed up to launch the Smarter Home Bundle: a powerful new offering that simplifies home energy management and enhances everyday living for Texans.

With smart technology, seamless app integration, and added energy savings, this bundle marks a major leap forward in how homeowners manage their comfort, security, and electricity usage.

What’s included in the Smarter Home Bundle?
Qualifying current and new Reliant electricity customers can take advantage of this premium bundle, which includes:

  • A free Vivint Doorbell Camera Pro with Smart Deter™ technology that detects deliveries and deters theft
  • A free Vivint Smart Thermostat, designed to integrate with HVAC systems for efficient temperature control
  • White-glove professional installation from Vivint Smart Home Pros
  • Access to an exclusive Vivint app experience, combining smart device controls and personalized energy insights powered by Reliant

All this is included at no additional cost with enrollment in the Smarter Home Bundle.

 Reliant Smarter Home Bundle Let the pros handle installation.Photo courtesy of Reliant

A unified, smarter home

Reliant and Vivint, both NRG companies, are offering the Smarter Home Bundle as an all-in-one solution for customers looking to streamline home management. By combining smart home security features with advanced energy tools, users gain greater control, comfort, and peace of mind. With one app, customers can monitor their home, manage devices, and track energy use — anytime, anywhere.

According to recent NRG Consumer research, nearly 70% of people want a single platform to manage their smart homes. The Vivint app, which averages 16 daily interactions, delivers exactly that.

Designed for savings and simplicity
Energy efficiency isn’t just a buzzword — it’s a key feature of the Smarter Home Bundle. As more households adopt smart devices (45% in 2024, up from 10% a decade ago), this bundle gives users tools that help cut energy use and potentially lower bills. In fact, 72% of surveyed users cite savings as the top benefit of smart home technology after safety.

The Vivint Smart Thermostat plays a major role here. It not only learns users' habits but also integrates with Reliant’s Degrees of Difference program, adjusting temperatures slightly during peak electricity demand. These small changes can have a big impact on grid stability — especially in hot Texas summers — without sacrificing comfort. Customers remain in control at all times and can override temperature changes in the app or manually if needed.

 Reliant Smarter Home Bundle Manage everything with one app.Graphic courtesy of Reliant

Powering the future with virtual power plants
The Smarter Home Bundle also contributes to Reliant’s growing residential virtual power plant (VPP) network. VPPs are a forward-thinking approach to grid management that leverage small-scale energy resources — like smart thermostats, home batteries, and electric vehicles — to balance electricity demand across thousands of homes.

With Texas experiencing record-high energy loads (85 gigwatts in 2023), this kind of coordination is critical to ensuring a stable and reliable power grid, especially during extreme weather events.

“By bringing together innovative leaders like Reliant and Vivint, we are providing smarter, more efficient energy solutions for Texans,” says Mark Parsons, senior vice president, NRG Consumer. “The Reliant Smarter Home Bundle combines our electricity plans with advanced technology, empowering Texans to take control of their energy usage and simplify home management. We are excited to roll out additional features in the coming months at no cost, all designed to help our customers manage their home’s comfort, security, and energy usage, all in one place.”

Learn more and enroll here.

Houston startups win NASA funding for space tech projects

fresh funding

Three Houston startups were granted awards from NASA this month to develop new technologies for the space agency.

The companies are among nearly 300 recipients that received a total agency investment of $44.85 million through the Small Business Innovation Research (SBIR) and Small Business Technology Transfer (STTR) Phase I grant programs, according to NASA.

Each selected company will receive $150,000 and, based on their progress, will be eligible to submit proposals for up to $850,000 in Phase II funding to develop prototypes.

The SBIR program lasts for six months and contracts small businesses. The Houston NASA 2025 SBIR awardees include:

Solidec Inc.

  • Principal investigator: Yang Xia
  • Proposal: Highly reliable and energy-efficient electrosynthesis of high-purity hydrogen peroxide from air and water in a nanobubble facilitated porous solid electrolyte reactor

Rarefied Studios LLC

  • Principal investigator: Kyle Higdon
  • Proposal: Plume impingement module for autonomous proximity operations

The STTR program contracts small businesses in partnership with a research institution and lasts for 13 months. The Houston NASA 2025 STTR awardees include:

Affekta LLC

  • Principal investigator: Hedinn Steingrimsson
  • Proposal: Verifiable success in handling unknown unknowns in space habitat simulations and a cyber-physical system

Solidec and Affekta have ties to Rice University.

Solidec extracts molecules from water and air, then transforms them into pure chemicals and fuels that are free of carbon emissions. It was co-founded by Rice professor Haotian Wang and and was an Innovation Fellow at Rice’s Liu Idea Lab for Innovation and Entrepreneurship. It was previouslt selected for Chevron Technology Ventures’ catalyst program, a Rice One Small Step grant, a U.S. Department of Energy grant, and the first cohort of the Activate Houston program.

Affekta, an AI course, AI assistance and e-learning platform, was a part of Rice's OwlSpark in 2023.