An article by Prof. Visscher and colleagues was recently published in Nature Geosciences. The group assessed the chemistry and nature of cell-like globules found in 2.72-billion-year-old fossil stromatolites from Western Australia. The globules were composed of organic carbon and arsenic and their investigation suggests that life existed as a result of arsenic cycling before the Earth’s atmosphere and ocean were oxygenated. Details about this important finding can be found at:
http://www.nature.com/ngeo/journal/v7/n11/full/ngeo2276.html