| Self-instructed condensation of amino acids into polymers. | |
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MedLine Citation:
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PMID: 11537767 Owner: NASA Status: MEDLINE |
Abstract/OtherAbstract:
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In contemporary cells biological information is largely stored in nucleic acids. Therefore, a prerequisite in many theories on the origin of cellular life is the pre-existence of self-replicating polynucleotides that had to be formed by abiotic processes on the prebiotic Earth. It is usually assumed that the spontaneous synthesis of a self-replicating polynucleotide could take place readily. However, serious stereochemical obstacles exist which make Such a synthesis extremely improbable. Amino acids on the other hand, which are abundantly formed in prebiotic simulation experiments, are relatively easily polymerized to macromolecules (protoproteins) that share with modern proteins many properties: e.g., definable non-random structure, selected amino acid sequences, enzyme-like activities and self-assembly into supramolecular structures. Prebiotic polyamino acids are therefore regarded by some scientists, including the present author, as the first informational macromolecules. The origin of this information is the chemical reactivity of the various prebiotic amino acids and their chemical response to their environment. The first informational polynucleotides were likely formed by a polynucleotide polymerase activity of prebiotic protoproteins. A contemporary model for this process is seen, e.g., in the activity of template-free Q beta-replicase. |
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Authors:
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K Dose |
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Publication Detail:
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Type: Journal Article |
Journal Detail:
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Title: Advances in space research : the official journal of the Committee on Space Research (COSPAR) Volume: 4 ISSN: 0273-1177 ISO Abbreviation: Adv Space Res Publication Date: 1984 |
Date Detail:
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Created Date: 1999-06-27 Completed Date: 1999-06-27 Revised Date: 2007-04-16 |
Medline Journal Info:
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Nlm Unique ID: 9878935 Medline TA: Adv Space Res Country: ENGLAND |
Other Details:
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Languages: eng Pagination: 135-42 Citation Subset: S |
Affiliation:
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Institute for Biochemistry, University, Mainz, FRG. |
Export Citation:
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APA/MLA Format Download EndNote Download BibTex |
| MeSH Terms | |
Descriptor/Qualifier:
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Amino Acids
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chemistry* Evolution, Chemical* Evolution, Molecular* Nucleic Acids / chemical synthesis Peptides / chemical synthesis Polymers / chemical synthesis* |
| Chemical | |
Reg. No./Substance:
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0/Amino Acids; 0/Nucleic Acids; 0/Peptides; 0/Polymers |
From MEDLINE®/PubMed®, a database of the U.S. National Library of Medicine
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