The Ribofilm as a Concept for Life’s Origins (Cell, 2015)

• John Baross

Full Citation:
Baross, J. A., & Martin, W. F. (2015). The Ribofilm as a Concept for Life’s Origins. Cell, 162(1), 13–15. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.cell.2015.06.038

Abstract:
Recent phylogenetic data indicating that the first archaea were methane-producing galvanizes cross-disciplinary evidence supporting the hypothesis that life arose via thermodynamically directed events at hydrothermal vents. The new developments lead us to propose the concept of a ribofilm in which RNA’s origin-of-life role is more akin to a slowly changing platform than a spontaneous self-replicator.

URL:
https://www.cell.com/cell/fulltext/S0092-8674(15)00763-1

VPL Research Tasks:
Task D: The Living Planet