New findings from the Salk Institute supply strong evidence for the RNA World hypothesis, revealing an RNA enzyme that properly reproduces and progresses RNA hairs. Researchers in the 1960s, consisting of Salk Fellow Leslie Orgel, proposed that life started with the “RNA World,” a theoretical period in which little, stringy RNA particles ruled the early Earth and developed the characteristics of Darwinian evolution.Hammerhead sequences copied by the lower-fidelity polymerase drift away from their original RNA series (top) and lose their function over time. The research study, published in Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences (PNAS) on March 4, 2024, unveils an RNA enzyme that can make precise copies of other practical RNA strands, while likewise permitting new versions of the molecule to emerge over time. Is it possible that RNA served as the precursor to life as we understand it?Scientists like Joyce have been exploring this idea for years, with a specific focus on RNA polymerase ribozymes– RNA particles that can make copies of other RNA strands. The RNA polymerases copying precision should surpass a vital limit to keep heritable information over multiple generations, and this limit would have increased as the progressing RNAs increased in size and complexity.The Future of RNA Research and Autonomous LifeJoyces team is re-creating this procedure in laboratory test tubes, using increasing selective pressure on the system to produce better-performing polymerases, with the goal of one day producing an RNA polymerase that can reproduce itself.
New findings from the Salk Institute supply strong evidence for the RNA World hypothesis, revealing an RNA enzyme that accurately replicates and develops RNA hairs. Is it possible that RNA served as the precursor to life as we understand it?Scientists like Joyce have been exploring this idea for years, with a particular focus on RNA polymerase ribozymes– RNA particles that can make copies of other RNA hairs. The RNA polymerases copying precision must exceed a critical threshold to maintain heritable information over several generations, and this threshold would have risen as the progressing RNAs increased in size and complexity.The Future of RNA Research and Autonomous LifeJoyces group is re-creating this procedure in lab test tubes, applying increasing selective pressure on the system to produce better-performing polymerases, with the objective of one day producing an RNA polymerase that can reproduce itself.