3
$\begingroup$

Pretend a human had their body "reflected": heart on the wrong side, etc.; but also at the biochemical level: proteins, sugars, cells, DNA, everything.

What would the effects be of that human's exposure to other Earth life?

I assume that quick death from malnutrition would be inevitable, but would there be more immediate life-threatening consequences?

Would anyone who comes into contact with the mirrored person be at risk?

Would reflected bacteria pose an immediate threat to the ecosystem?

Improve this question
$\endgroup$
7
  • 1
    $\begingroup$ The title and the text of the question are pretty different. The answer to the title is that all biological proteins are enantiopure. $\endgroup$
    – jerepierre
    May 21 '15 at 23:23
  • $\begingroup$ I'm going to rephrase it. $\endgroup$
    – Trixie Wolf
    May 21 '15 at 23:52
  • 1
    $\begingroup$ dont mix left/right-hand symmetry with anti-matter substances. those would annihilate "normal" matter $\endgroup$
    – aaaaa says reinstate Monica
    May 22 '15 at 20:40
  • 1
    $\begingroup$ @AliceD My question is more specific than your proposal, though. I don't only mean a human based on D-aminos, I mean a human whose structure exactly matches the reverse: amino acids and proteins, but also simple chemicals like glucose (they would taste the sweetness, but it would provide no energy because it cannot be metabolized). This is relevant for the "would the bacteria that came with them destroy everything or die" scenario. I'll try to rephrase the question later today, though. $\endgroup$
    – Trixie Wolf
    May 23 '15 at 23:28
  • 1
    $\begingroup$ Please rephrase. It sounds interesting, but as of now it is unclear what you are after. Also, if everything is mirrored, how would you know that glucose will not be metabolized? The issue with hypothetical "what if" questions is that they cannot be answered, only speculated upon. Speculative questions are pretty much always closed. Research on D-amino acids exists afaik and that's why I brought it up as suggestion. Good luck! $\endgroup$
    – AliceD ♦
    May 24 '15 at 0:01