Abstract
Molecules which store genetic information (DNA and RNA) are central to all life on Earth. The formation of these complex macromolecules, and ultimately life, required specific conditions, including the synthesis and polymerization of precursors (nucleotides), the protection and persistence of information polymers in a changing environment, and the expression of the “biological potential” of the molecules, i.e. their capacity to multiply and evolve. Determining how these steps occurred and how the earliest genetic molecules originated on Earth is a problem that is far from being resolved. Recent observations on the synthesis of polynucleotides on clay surfaces, the resistance of clay-adsorbed nucleic acid molecules to environmental degradation and the biological activityof clay-adsorbed DNA and RNA molecules suggest that mineral surfaces could have played a crucial role in the prebiotic formation of the biomolecules basic to life.
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Gallori, E., Biondi, E., Franchi, M. (2004). Mineral Surfaces as a Cradle of Primordial Genetic Material. In: Seckbach, J., Chela-Flores, J., Owen, T., Raulin, F. (eds) Life in the Universe. Cellular Origin and Life in Extreme Habitats and Astrobiology, vol 7. Springer, Dordrecht. https://doi.org/10.1007/978-94-007-1003-0_29
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DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/978-94-007-1003-0_29
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