The simple emergence of complex molecular function
Open accessAbstract
with relative ease. At early times of molecular evolution, random polymers could have sufficed for the appearance of incipient chemical activity, while the cellular environment harbours a myriad of proto-functional molecules. The emergence of function is facilitated by several mechanisms intrinsic to molecular organization, such as redundant mapping of sequences into structures, phenotypic plasticity, modularity or cooperative associations between genomic sequences. It is the availability of niches in the molecular ecology that filters new potentially functional proposals. New phenotypes and subsequent levels of molecular complexity could be attained through combinatorial explorations of currently available molecular variants. Natural selection does the rest. This article is part of the theme issue 'Emergent phenomena in complex physical and socio-technical systems: from cells to societies'.
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Different functions may await just a few mutations apart.
“Quoting Susanna Manrubia, these properties further ensure that different functions may await just a few mutations apart [46,49,50].”
From Fundamental constraints to the logic of living systems (2024) · cites this paper as [46]
Genotype space is highly redundant, meaning that a huge number of genotypes are consistent with the same phenotype.
“This is particularly relevant when dealing with the emergence of molecular functions, where the genotype space is highly redundant [46], meaning that a huge number of genotypes are consistent with the same phenotype [47].”
From Fundamental constraints to the logic of living systems (2024) · cites this paper as [46]
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Fundamental constraints to the logic of living systems
Solé, R., Kempes, C. P., Corominas-Murtra, B., De Domenico, M., Kolchinsky, A., Lachmann, M., Libby, E., Saavedra, S., Smith, E., & Wolpert, D. (2024) · Interface Focus · doi:10.1098/rsfs.2024.0010 · Cited by 34 · see citing works
“Quoting Susanna Manrubia, these properties further ensure that different functions may await just a few mutations apart [46,49,50].”
Background
- Authors
- Manrubia, S.
- Affiliations
- Centro Nacional de Biotecnología (ES)
- Corresponding author
- Manrubia, Susanna
- ORCID
- Manrubia, Susanna
- Venue
- Philosophical Transactions of the Royal Society A: Mathematical, Physical and Engineering Sciences
- Publisher
- The Royal Society
- Published
- 2022-05-23
- Volume
- 380
- Issue
- 2227
- Pages
- 20200422-20200422
- ISSN
- 1364-503X (ISSN-L)
- 1471-2962
- OpenAlex
- W3165816790
- Cited by
- 13
- References
- 10
- Citations by year
- 2026: 2 · 2025: 3 · 2024: 5 · 2023: 2 · 2022: 1
- FWCI
- 0.31
- Type
- journal article
- Language
- en
- Open access
- green
- arxiv.org
- Locations
- Philosophical Transactions of the Royal Society A Mathematical Physical and Engineering Sciences (publishedVersion)
- PubMed (publishedVersion)
- arXiv (Cornell University) (submittedVersion)
- arXiv (Cornell University)
- Funders
- Ministerio de Ciencia e Innovación ("Severo Ochoa" Centers of Excellence to CNB, SEV 2)
- Ministerio de Ciencia, Innovación y Universidades / FEDER funds of the EU (FIS2017-89773-P)
- Topics
- Physical Sciences › Physics and Astronomy › Astronomy and Astrophysics › Origins and Evolution of Life
- Life Sciences › Biochemistry, Genetics and Molecular Biology › Genetics › Evolution and Genetic Dynamics
- Social Sciences › Arts and Humanities › History and Philosophy of Science › Philosophy and History of Science
- Keywords
- molecular evolution, emergence of complexity, random polymers, sequence-structure mapping, phenotypic plasticity, modularity, cooperatives, molecular ecology, natural selection
- MeSH terms
- Adaptation, Physiological, Biological Evolution, Phenotype, Selection, Genetic, Evolution, Molecular
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