Article Synopsis
- Membraneless coacervate microdroplets are proposed as models for early life forms (protocells) because they can grow, divide, and concentrate RNA, but their rapid fusion and RNA exchange undermine genetic diversity and evolutionary potential.
- The study found that adding distilled water creates electrostatic crosslinks that prevent droplet fusion and allow RNA to remain compartmentalized for days, which is crucial for maintaining genetic identities.
- These findings suggest that stable, nonfusing coacervate droplets could serve as viable protocells that might support the evolution of compartmentalized ribozymes in early Earth conditions.
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Article Abstract
Membraneless coacervate microdroplets have long been proposed as model protocells as they can grow, divide, and concentrate RNA by natural partitioning. However, the rapid exchange of RNA between these compartments, along with their rapid fusion, both within minutes, means that individual droplets would be unable to maintain their separate genetic identities. Hence, Darwinian evolution would not be possible, and the population would be vulnerable to collapse due to the rapid spread of parasitic RNAs. In this study, we show that distilled water, mimicking rain/freshwater, leads to the formation of electrostatic crosslinks on the interface of coacervate droplets that not only suppress droplet fusion indefinitely but also allow the spatiotemporal compartmentalization of RNA on a timescale of days depending on the length and structure of RNA. We suggest that these nonfusing membraneless droplets could potentially act as protocells with the capacity to evolve compartmentalized ribozymes in prebiotic environments.
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| http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC11338219 | PMC |
| http://dx.doi.org/10.1126/sciadv.adn9657 | DOI Listing |
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