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bioRxiv · 10.1101/2025.06.10.658922

ChemOrigins: A community curated database for origins of life chemistry

Cuevas, B.·Adam, Z. R.·Cove, D.·Kacar, B.
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Abstract

The origin of life is one of the most compelling questions in science. While experimental prebiotic chemistry has produced a wide range of reactions and plausible pathways, the resulting data remain fragmented across numerous publications and disciplinary journals. Here, we introduce ChemOrigins, an open-access, community-curated knowledge graph that organizes experimentally supported prebiotic reactions. By representing molecules, reactions, conditions, and literature sources as interconnected nodes, ChemOrigins enables modular grouping of reactions and supports complex, query-driven exploration via a graph database architecture. We demonstrate the utility of this framework through text-based searches, reaction network expansions, and the interactive visualization of user-annotated chemical modules. Unlike generative models, ChemOrigins prioritizes curated, evidence-based content and fosters community contributions through expert annotations and a user-friendly interface. As a structured resource, ChemOrigins is designed to complement existing chemical databases and serve as a foundation for computational, educational, and theoretical research in the origins-of-life field.

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Cuevas, B., Adam, Z. R., Cove, D., Kacar, B.. 2025-06-16. ChemOrigins: A community curated database for origins of life chemistry. https://doi.org/10.1101/2025.06.10.658922

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