The Origin of Life in the Early Continental Crust: A Comprehensive Model
Continental rift zones on the early Earth provided essential conditions for the emergence of the first cells. These conditions included an abundant supply of raw materials, cyclic fluctuations in pressure and temperature over millions of years, and transitions of gases between supercritical and subc...
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MDPI AG
2025-03-01
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| author | Ulrich Schreiber |
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| author_sort | Ulrich Schreiber |
| collection | DOAJ |
| description | Continental rift zones on the early Earth provided essential conditions for the emergence of the first cells. These conditions included an abundant supply of raw materials, cyclic fluctuations in pressure and temperature over millions of years, and transitions of gases between supercritical and subcritical phases. While evidence supports vesicle formation and the chemical evolution of peptides, the mechanism by which information was stored remains unresolved. This study proposes a model illustrating how interactions among organic molecules may have enabled the encoding of amino acid sequences in RNA. The model highlights the interplay between three key molecular components: a proto-tRNA, the vesicle membrane, and short peptides. The vesicle membrane acted as a reservoir for hydrophobic amino acids and facilitated their attachment to proto-tRNA. As a single strand, proto-tRNA also served as proto-mRNA, enabling it to be read by charged tRNAs. By replicating this information and arranging RNA strands, the first functional peptides such as pore-forming proteins may have formed, thus improving the long-term stability of the vesicles. This model further outlines how these vesicles may have evolved into the earliest cells, with enzymes and larger RNA molecules giving rise to tRNA and ribosomal structures. Shearing forces may have facilitated the first cellular divisions, representing a pre-LUCA stage. |
| format | Article |
| id | doaj-art-e40c2df5c0994bee8a511aa1583b093e |
| institution | OA Journals |
| issn | 2075-1729 |
| language | English |
| publishDate | 2025-03-01 |
| publisher | MDPI AG |
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| series | Life |
| spelling | doaj-art-e40c2df5c0994bee8a511aa1583b093e2025-08-20T01:48:52ZengMDPI AGLife2075-17292025-03-0115343310.3390/life15030433The Origin of Life in the Early Continental Crust: A Comprehensive ModelUlrich Schreiber0Faculty of Biology, University of Duisburg-Essen, 45141 Essen, GermanyContinental rift zones on the early Earth provided essential conditions for the emergence of the first cells. These conditions included an abundant supply of raw materials, cyclic fluctuations in pressure and temperature over millions of years, and transitions of gases between supercritical and subcritical phases. While evidence supports vesicle formation and the chemical evolution of peptides, the mechanism by which information was stored remains unresolved. This study proposes a model illustrating how interactions among organic molecules may have enabled the encoding of amino acid sequences in RNA. The model highlights the interplay between three key molecular components: a proto-tRNA, the vesicle membrane, and short peptides. The vesicle membrane acted as a reservoir for hydrophobic amino acids and facilitated their attachment to proto-tRNA. As a single strand, proto-tRNA also served as proto-mRNA, enabling it to be read by charged tRNAs. By replicating this information and arranging RNA strands, the first functional peptides such as pore-forming proteins may have formed, thus improving the long-term stability of the vesicles. This model further outlines how these vesicles may have evolved into the earliest cells, with enzymes and larger RNA molecules giving rise to tRNA and ribosomal structures. Shearing forces may have facilitated the first cellular divisions, representing a pre-LUCA stage.https://www.mdpi.com/2075-1729/15/3/433origin of lifehydrothermal biochemistryinformation storagecontinental crust modelsupercritical fluidspre-LUCA stage |
| spellingShingle | Ulrich Schreiber The Origin of Life in the Early Continental Crust: A Comprehensive Model Life origin of life hydrothermal biochemistry information storage continental crust model supercritical fluids pre-LUCA stage |
| title | The Origin of Life in the Early Continental Crust: A Comprehensive Model |
| title_full | The Origin of Life in the Early Continental Crust: A Comprehensive Model |
| title_fullStr | The Origin of Life in the Early Continental Crust: A Comprehensive Model |
| title_full_unstemmed | The Origin of Life in the Early Continental Crust: A Comprehensive Model |
| title_short | The Origin of Life in the Early Continental Crust: A Comprehensive Model |
| title_sort | origin of life in the early continental crust a comprehensive model |
| topic | origin of life hydrothermal biochemistry information storage continental crust model supercritical fluids pre-LUCA stage |
| url | https://www.mdpi.com/2075-1729/15/3/433 |
| work_keys_str_mv | AT ulrichschreiber theoriginoflifeintheearlycontinentalcrustacomprehensivemodel AT ulrichschreiber originoflifeintheearlycontinentalcrustacomprehensivemodel |