The Composition and Organization of Cytoplasm in Prebiotic Cells

作者：Trevors Jack T^*

来源：International Journal of Molecular Sciences, 2011, 12(3): 1650-1659.

DOI：10.3390/ijms12031650

• bacteria
• prebiotic cytoplasm
• genetic instructions
• hydrogel
• origin of cytoplasm
• spatial organization

This article discusses the hypothesized composition and organization of cytoplasm in prebiotic cells from a theoretical perspective and also based upon what is currently known about bacterial cytoplasm. It is unknown if the first prebiotic, microscopic scale, cytoplasm was initially contained within a primitive, continuous, semipermeable membrane, or was an uncontained gel substance, that later became enclosed by a continuous membrane. Another possibility is that the first cytoplasm in prebiotic cells and a primitive membrane organized at the same time, permitting a rapid transition to the first cell(s) capable of growth and division, thus assisting with the emergence of life on Earth less than a billion years after the formation of the Earth. It is hypothesized that the organization and composition of cytoplasm progressed initially from an unstructured, microscopic hydrogel to a more complex cytoplasm, that may have been in the volume magnitude of about 0.1-0.2 mu m(3) (possibly less if a nanocell) prior to the first cell division.

• 出版日期2011-3