The Department of Structural Biology, Weizmann Institute, Rehovot 76100, Israel.
Int J Mol Sci. 2009 Jun 30;10(7):2921-2934. doi: 10.3390/ijms10072921.
A symmetric pocket-like entity, composed of two L-shaped RNA units, encircles the peptide synthesis site within the contemporary ribosome. This entity was suggested to be the vestige of a dimeric proto-ribosome, which could have formed spontaneously in the prebiotic world, catalyzing non-coded peptide bond formation and elongation. This structural element, beyond offering the initial step in the evolution of translation, is hypothesized here to be linked to the origin of life. By catalyzing the production of random peptide chains, the proto-ribosome could have enabled the formation of primary enzymes, launching a process of co-evolution of the translation apparatus and the proteins, thus presenting an alternative to the RNA world hypothesis.
一个对称的口袋状实体,由两个 L 形 RNA 单位组成,环绕着当代核糖体中的肽合成位点。这个实体被认为是二聚体原核核糖体的遗迹,它可能在原始生命世界中自发形成,催化非编码肽键的形成和延伸。这个结构元素不仅提供了翻译进化的初始步骤,还与生命起源有关。通过催化随机肽链的产生,原核核糖体可以形成原始酶,启动翻译装置和蛋白质的共同进化过程,从而提供了一种替代 RNA 世界假说的方法。