Scientists Create DNA/Protein Hybrids That May've Given Rise to Life

80beats
By Eliza Strickland
Jun 16, 2009 8:57 PMNov 5, 2019 8:58 PM
hybrid-molecule.jpg

Newsletter

Sign up for our email newsletter for the latest science news
 

How life evolved from a mix of chemicals on the young planet Earth is one of science's most enduring mysteries, which biochemists are attempting to solve by recreating the earliest building blocks of life in the laboratory. Earth's biology is based on DNA, which carries all an organism's genetic information in a molecule that takes the shape of a spiraling ladder. RNA, the molecule that facilitates protein manufacturing, has a simpler shape--it's a single strand, as opposed to DNA's double strand--leading some biologists to propose the RNA world hypothesis in which RNA evolved first and eventually gave rise to DNA. But trying to imagine the assembly of RNA from its chemical components poses its own problems. How could RNA, which encodes proteins,

0 free articles left
Want More? Get unlimited access for as low as $1.99/month

Already a subscriber?

Register or Log In

0 free articlesSubscribe
Discover Magazine Logo
Want more?

Keep reading for as low as $1.99!

Subscribe

Already a subscriber?

Register or Log In

Stay Curious

Sign up for our weekly newsletter and unlock one more article for free.

 

View our Privacy Policy


Want more?
Keep reading for as low as $1.99!


Log In or Register

Already a subscriber?
Find my Subscription

More From Discover
Stay Curious
Join
Our List

Sign up for our weekly science updates.

 
Subscribe
To The Magazine

Save up to 40% off the cover price when you subscribe to Discover magazine.

Copyright © 2025 LabX Media Group