Biology

Karina Morrison

30 October, 14:07

One hypothesis that has been proposed regarding the origin of life suggests that life evolved fromanʺRNA worldʺto today'sʺDNA world.ʺ

Considering the properties of RNA and DNA molecules, which questions would direct an investigation of the most insightful test (s) of this hypothesis?

A) Since ribozymes could freely enter and leave the vesicles, could these molecules have brought external DNA into the cell as a less stable, but more reliable storage molecule of double-stranded DNA?

B) Is it likely that simple, yet stable RNA molecules served as a primitive precursor to a less stable DNA molecule that was more capable of storing more information?

C) Is it likely that RNA molecules functioned as ribozymes to synthesize DNA from amino acids, and that this role was reversed when DNA became the information source?

D) Could RNA have provided a template for DNA assembly, thereby enabling a more stable molecule that is replicated more accurately?