Origins of life: The Protein Folding Problem all over again?
Charles D. Kocher, Ken A. Dill
Abstract
How did specific useful protein sequences arise from simpler molecules at the origin of life? This seemingly needle-in-a-haystack problem has remarkably close resemblance to the old Protein Folding Problem, for which the solution is now known from statistical physics. Based on the logic that Origins must have come only after there was an operative evolution mechanism-which selects on phenotype, not genotype-we give a perspective that proteins and their folding processes are likely to have been the primary driver of the early stages of the origin of life.
Topics & Concepts
HaystackProtein foldingFolding (DSP implementation)Mechanism (biology)Evolutionary biologyAbiogenesisPerspective (graphical)Computational biologyBiologyComputer sciencePhilosophyGeneticsArtificial intelligenceEpistemologyEngineeringCell biologyElectrical engineeringOrigins and Evolution of LifeProtein Structure and DynamicsPhotosynthetic Processes and Mechanisms