title: Coevolution Theory of the Genetic Code at Age Forty: Pathway to Translation and Synthetic Life.
abstract: The origins of the components of genetic coding are examined in the present study. Genetic information arose from replicator induction by metabolite in accordance with the metabolic expansion law. Messenger RNA and transfer RNA stemmed from a template for binding the aminoacyl-RNA synthetase ribozymes employed to synthesize peptide prosthetic groups on RNAs in the Peptidated RNA World. Coevolution of the genetic code with amino acid biosynthesis generated tRNA paralogs that identify a last universal common ancestor (LUCA) of extant life close to Methanopyrus, which in turn points to archaeal tRNA introns as the most primitive introns and the anticodon usage of Methanopyrus as an ancient mode of wobble. The prediction of the coevolution theory of the genetic code that the code should be a mutable code has led to the isolation of optional and mandatory synthetic life forms with altered protein alphabets.
authors.affiliation: Division of Life Science and Applied Genomics Center, Hong Kong University of Science &amp; Technology, Clear Water Bay, Hong Kong. bcjtw@ust.hk.
authors.forename: J Tze-Fei
authors.initials: JT
authors.lastname: Wong
authors.affiliation: Division of Life Science and Applied Genomics Center, Hong Kong University of Science &amp; Technology, Clear Water Bay, Hong Kong. bcnskaa@hotmail.com.
authors.forename: Siu-Kin
authors.initials: SK
authors.lastname: Ng
authors.affiliation: Division of Life Science and Applied Genomics Center, Hong Kong University of Science &amp; Technology, Clear Water Bay, Hong Kong. bcmwk@ust.hk.
authors.forename: Wai-Kin
authors.initials: WK
authors.lastname: Mat
authors.affiliation: Division of Life Science and Applied Genomics Center, Hong Kong University of Science &amp; Technology, Clear Water Bay, Hong Kong. thuac@connect.ust.hk.
authors.forename: Taobo
authors.initials: T
authors.lastname: Hu
authors.affiliation: Division of Life Science and Applied Genomics Center, Hong Kong University of Science &amp; Technology, Clear Water Bay, Hong Kong. hxue@ust.hk.
authors.forename: Hong
authors.initials: H
authors.lastname: Xue
keywords: Peptidated RNA World; coevolution theory; gene; intron; last universal common ancestor (LUCA); messenger RNA; transfer RNA; wobble