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Can the origin of biosynthetic routes be explained by a Frankenstein’s monster-like spontaneous assembly of prebiotic reactants?

Summary

This scientific paper examines how the first metabolic pathways on Earth might have originated. The authors argue against the idea that metabolic pathways simply assembled themselves from chemicals present in the primitive environment, like putting together parts of a monster. Instead, they propose that early genetic systems and RNA-based catalysts were necessary for metabolism to develop and evolve into the complex systems we see in life today.

Background

The origin of metabolic pathways has been debated in the context of prebiotic chemistry and chemical evolution. Many researchers have proposed that biosynthetic routes emerged directly from the assembly of prebiotic reactants, based on similarities between abiotic syntheses and modern metabolic pathways.

Objective

This paper critically examines whether metabolic pathways could have spontaneously assembled from prebiotic reactants without genetic apparatus, and whether biochemistry recapitulates prebiotic chemistry. The authors assess alternative hypotheses including the semi-enzymatic theory of metabolism and the role of RNA and ribonucleotides in early metabolism.

Results

The analysis reveals major chemical differences between prebiotic abiotic processes and extant biosynthetic pathways, suggesting similarities may result from chemical determinism rather than evolutionary descent. The authors demonstrate that availability of metabolic components does not ensure their spontaneous assembly into functional pathways without genetic systems.

Conclusion

Metabolic pathways likely require genetically encoded catalysts for persistence and evolution, and cannot spontaneously self-organize like Frankenstein’s monster. The intertwining of metabolic cycles with replicative systems, possibly through ribozymes and ribonucleotide derivatives, represents a more plausible explanation for the origin of metabolism.
  • Published in:Philosophical Transactions of the Royal Society B: Biological Sciences,
  • Study Type:Review,
  • Source: PMID: 41035326, DOI: 10.1098/rstb.2024.0289
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