title: How the first biopolymers could have evolved.
abstract: In this work, we discuss a possible origin of the first biopolymers with stable unique structures. We suggest that at the prebiotic stage of evolution, long organic polymers had to be compact to avoid hydrolysis and had to be soluble and thus must not be exceedingly hydrophobic. We present an algorithm that generates such sequences for model proteins. The evolved sequences turn out to have a stable unique structure, into which they quickly fold. This result illustrates the idea that the unique three-dimensional native structures of first biopolymers could have evolved as a side effect of nonspecific physicochemical factors acting at the prebiotic stage of evolution.
authors.affiliation: Harvard University, Department of Chemistry, Cambridge, MA 02138, USA.
authors.forename: V I
authors.initials: VI
authors.lastname: Abkevich
authors.forename: A M
authors.initials: AM
authors.lastname: Gutin
authors.forename: E I
authors.initials: EI
authors.lastname: Shakhnovich
mesh_terms: D000465:Algorithms; D005075:Biological Evolution; D001704:Biopolymers; D000069497:Origin of Life; D010455:Peptides / Q000737:chemistry*; D017510:Protein Folding
chemical_list: D001704:Biopolymers; D010455:Peptides