Coenzymes as fossils of an earlier metabolic state
Abstract
A metabolic system composed of nucleic acid enzymes is proposed to have existed prior to the evolution of ribosomal protein synthesis. Vestiges of these nucleic acid enzymes persist in contemporary coenzymes. This proposal rationalizes the fact that many coenzymes are nucleotides or heterocyclic bases which could be derived from nucleotides.
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Present-day low molecular weight cofactors may have been early non-protein catalysts.
“This notion obtains further support from the experiment-based proposals that present-day low molecular weight cofactors may have been early non-protein catalysts [32,204,205,213,214].”
From Systems protobiology: origin of life in lipid catalytic networks (2018) · cites this paper as [213]
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- Authors
- White, H. B.
- Affiliations
- University of Delaware (US)
- Corresponding author
- White, Harold B.
- Venue
- Journal of Molecular Evolution
- Published
- 1976-06
- Volume
- 7
- Issue
- 2
- Pages
- 101-104
- ISSN
- 0022-2844 (ISSN-L)
- 1432-1432
- OpenAlex
- W2050641111
- Cited by
- 493
- References
- 0
- Citations by year
- 2026: 13 · 2025: 16 · 2024: 18 · 2023: 17 · 2022: 22 · 2021: 23 · 2020: 15 · 2019: 14 · 2018: 10 · 2017: 17 · 2016: 13 · 2015: 15 · 2014: 11 · 2013: 13 · 2012: 18
- FWCI
- 1.89
- Type
- journal article
- Language
- en
- Open access
- closed
- Licence
- www.springer.com/tdm (tdm)
- Locations
- Journal of Molecular Evolution (publishedVersion)
- PubMed (publishedVersion)
- Topics
- Physical Sciences › Physics and Astronomy › Astronomy and Astrophysics › Origins and Evolution of Life
- Life Sciences › Biochemistry, Genetics and Molecular Biology › Molecular Biology › RNA and protein synthesis mechanisms
- Life Sciences › Biochemistry, Genetics and Molecular Biology › Molecular Biology › Biochemical and Molecular Research
- Keywords
- coenzymes, origin of metabolism, nucleic acid enzymes, ribosomal protein synthesis, prebiotic evolution, heterocyclic bases, nucleotides
- MeSH terms
- Coenzymes, DNA Replication, Biological Evolution, Fossils, Genes, Paleontology, Transcription, Genetic
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