Work

Uncertainty of Prebiotic Scenarios: The Case of the Non-Enzymatic Reverse Tricarboxylic Acid Cycle

Year: 2015

Type: article

Abstract: We consider the hypothesis of the primordial nature of the non-enzymatic reverse tricarboxylic acid (rTCA) cycle and describe a modeling approach to quantify the uncertainty of this hypothesis due to the combinatorial aspect of the constituent chemical transformations. Our results suggest that a) rTCA cycle belongs to a degenerate optimum of auto-catalytic cycles, and b) the set of targets for investigations of the origin of the common metabolic core should be significantly extended.

Source: Scientific Reports

DOI: 10.1038/srep08009

Authors: Dmitry Yu Zubarev, Dmitrij Rappoport, Alán Aspuru-Guzik

Institution: Harvard University

Language: English

Topic: Origins and Evolution of Life

Subfield: Astronomy and Astrophysics

Field: Physics and Astronomy

Domain: Physical Sciences

Open Access status: gold

Estimated APC paid: $2,690

Funders: National Science Foundation, Simons Foundation