title: Emergence of information transmission in a prebiotic RNA reactor.
abstract: A poorly understood step in the transition from a chemical to a biological world is the emergence of self-replicating molecular systems. We study how a precursor for such a replicator might arise in a hydrothermal RNA reactor, which accumulates longer sequences from unbiased monomer influx and random ligation. In the reactor, intra- and intermolecular base pairing locally protects from random cleavage. By analyzing stochastic simulations, we find temporal sequence correlations that constitute a signature of information transmission, weaker but of the same form as in a true replicator.
authors.affiliation: Arnold-Sommerfeld-Center für Theoretische Physik and Center for NanoScience, Ludwig-Maximilians-Universität München, Germany.
authors.forename: Benedikt
authors.initials: B
authors.lastname: Obermayer
authors.forename: Hubert
authors.initials: H
authors.lastname: Krammer
authors.forename: Dieter
authors.initials: D
authors.lastname: Braun
authors.forename: Ulrich
authors.initials: U
authors.lastname: Gerland
mesh_terms: D001483:Base Sequence; D019418:Evolution, Chemical; D007700:Kinetics; D009690:Nucleic Acid Conformation; D009693:Nucleic Acid Hybridization; D059372:Nucleotide Motifs; D000069497:Origin of Life; D012313:RNA / Q000737:chemistry / Q000235:genetics / Q000378:metabolism*
chemical_list: D012313:RNA