Israeli Teams Link Magnetism to Origin-of-Life Chemistry

Israeli researchers from the Weizmann Institute of Science and the Hebrew University of Jerusalem reported that magnetic surfaces can separate L-methionine not only by chirality, but also by carbon isotope composition. The study, accepted in Chem, links two chemical fingerprints often used in origin-of-life research: biological handedness and isotope ratios. The teams used magnetic filters and mass spectrometry, finding electron spin-dependent interactions influenced natural and 13C-enriched L-methionine fractions. The work is basic science, not a finished technology, but it highlights the strength of Israeli university research and may inform future isotope-separation, analytical-chemistry and quantum-biology tools.