First Steps of Life

Ernesto Di Mauro is a biologist as well as a former Molecular Biology professor and vice-president of the Académie Européenne Interdisciplinaire des Sciences, France. His research focuses on the structural codes for complex molecular interactions in DNA topology, RNA-polymerases and DNA-topoisomerases, and the properties of guanine as the heart of autogenous generation.

• Introduction xiErnesto DI MAUROChapter 1 The Emergence of Life-Nurturing Conditions in the Universe 1Juan VLADILO1.1 Defining properties of life 11.1.1 Implications of the defining properties 21.2 Life-supporting conditions and environments 51.2.1 Chemical ingredients 61.2.2 Physical conditions 71.2.3 Habitable worlds 91.3 Setting the stage for chemistry and life in the Universe 101.3.1 Births of the laws of chemistry 101.3.2 Production of chemical elements 111.3.3 Assemblage of prebiotic molecules 121.3.4 Origin of water 141.3.5 Appearance of rocky planets 151.4 The habitable Universe 161.4.1 Circumstellar habitable zones 171.4.2 Galactic habitable zones 191.5 Planetary environments suitable for the origin of life 201.5.1 Abiogenesis on planetary surfaces 201.5.2 Abiogenesis in the oceans 221.5.3 Implications for the search for life outside Earth 231.6 The quest for inhabited worlds 231.7 References 24Chapter 2 Chirality and the Origins of Life 31Guillaume LESEIGNEUR and Uwe MEIERHENRICH2.1 Introduction to chirality 322.2 The asymmetry of life 352.3 The origin of homochirality 372.3.1 Stochastic theories 372.3.2 Deterministic theories 382.4 Space missions and the search for life and its origins 412.4.1 Rosetta 432.4.2 ExoMars 452.5 References 48Chapter 3 The Role of Formamide in Prebiotic Chemistry 55Raffaele SALADINO, Giovanna COSTANZO and Bruno Mattia BIZZARRI3.1 Introduction 553.2 Effect of minerals and self-organization in the prebiotic chemistry of formamide 573.2.1 Surface catalysis and geochemical scenarios 573.2.2 Chemomimesis, circularity and thermodynamic niches 593.2.3 Nucleosides phosphorylation 623.3 Continuity and mineral complexity 633.4 Energy-driven selectivity 673.5 References 68Chapter 4 A Praise of Imperfection: Emergence and Evolution of Metabolism 79Juli PERETÓ4.1 From Darwin to Jacob: perfection does not exist 794.2 Protometabolic networks 824.3 Enzyme promiscuity and metabolic innovation 864.4 Promiscuity, moonlighting and the essence of life 914.5 Acknowledgments 934.6 References 93Chapter 5 Viruses, Viroids and the Origins of Life 99David DEAMER and Marie-Christine MAUREL5.1 How were viruses discovered? A brief history 1005.2 Viral diversity 1015.3 Viral structure and function 1035.4 Viruses and mammalian genomes 1065.5 Role of viruses in human evolution, health and disease 1075.6 Viroids may be a link to ancient evolutionary pathways 1085.7 Origin and evolution of viroids 1095.8 Conclusion 1115.9 References 112Chapter 6 Is the Heterotrophic Theory of the Origin of Life Still Valid? 117Antonio LAZCANO6.1 Introduction 1176.2 The roaring 20s 1186.3 Coacervates as models of precellular structures 1216.4 Precellular evolution and the emergence of cells 1236.5 Final remarks: does Oparin still matter? 1286.6 Acknowledgments 1306.7 References 130Chapter 7 Making Biochemistry-Free (Generalized) Life in a Test Tube 135Juan PÉREZ-MERCADER7.1 Summary 1357.2 Introduction and background 1367.3 Laboratory implementation of an artificial autonomous, and self-organized functional system 1407.4 More physics and chemistry working together: phoenix, self-reproduction via spores, population growth and chemotaxis 1447.5 Discussion and conclusions 1527.6 Acknowledgments 1537.7 Appendices: Some additional emergent features in PISA "powered" synthetic biochemistry free protocells 1547.7.1 Chemotactic behavior 1547.7.2 Adaptive behavior and click-PISA 1557.7.3 Competitive exclusion principle and iniferter PISA 1567.7.4 PISA and its control by chemical automata 1567.7.5 Integrating PISA and information control with the Belousov–Zhabotinsky chemical reaction 1577.8 References 159Chapter 8 Hydrothermalism for the Chemical Evolution Toward the Simplest Life-Like System on the Hadean Earth 163Kunio KAWAMURA8.1 Introduction 1638.1.1 Realistic life-like systems on the Hadean Earth 1638.1.2 Water in universe 1658.1.3 Two-gene hypothesis, minerals and high temperature 1688.2 Hydrothermal environment for the chemical evolution of biomolecules 1708.2.1 As an energy source 1708.2.2 Temperature and pressure 1718.2.3 Biochemical interactions 1728.2.4 Minerals and the thermodynamically open system 1748.3 Hydrothermal methodologies regarding the origin-of-life study 1758.3.1 Technical background of research tools for hydrothermal reactions 1758.3.2 Recent development using flow system 1768.4 RNA world versus hydrothermalism 1788.4.1 Stability and accumulation of RNA 1788.4.2 RNA-based life-like system under hydrothermal environments 1828.5 Future outlook and conclusions 1858.6 Acknowledgments 1868.7 References 186Chapter 9 Studies in Mineral-Assisted Protometabolisms 193Jean-François LAMBERT, Louis TER-OVANESSIAN and Marie-Christine MAUREL9.1 Metabolism, protometabolism and minerals 1939.2 Adsorption on mineral surfaces 1969.2.1 Adsorption mechanisms 1969.2.2 Adsorption selectivities 1979.3 Mineral surfaces and reaction thermodynamics 1989.3.1 Minerals as reagents 1989.3.2 Concentrating reagents from the solution 1999.3.3 Altering free enthalpies of reaction 2019.3.4 Platforms to capture free energy from macroscopic sources (space gradients and time fluctuations) 2029.4 Minerals and reaction kinetics: heterogeneous catalysis 2049.4.1 Lessons from industrial heterogeneous catalysis 2049.4.2 What can heterogeneous catalysts do? 2059.4.3 Reaction selectivity 2069.5 A case study: primordial synthesis of pyrimidines 2079.6 Conclusion 2099.7 References 210Chapter 10 A Rationale for the Evolution of the Genetic Code in Relation to the Stability of RNA and Protein Structures 217Andrew TRAVERS10.1 Introduction 21710.2 Codon–anticodon recognition 21810.3 Concluding remarks 22610.4 Acknowledgments 22610.5 References 226List of Authors 231Index 233