Evolution at the Origins of Life?

Author:

Schoenmakers Ludo L. J.1ORCID,Reydon Thomas A. C.2,Kirschning Andreas3

Affiliation:

1. Konrad Lorenz Institute for Evolution and Cognition Research (KLI), 3400 Klosterneuburg, Austria

2. Institute of Philosophy, Centre for Ethics and Law in the Life Sciences (CELLS), Leibniz University Hannover, 30159 Hannover, Germany

3. Institute of Organic Chemistry, Leibniz University Hannover, 30167 Hannover, Germany

Abstract

The role of evolutionary theory at the origin of life is an extensively debated topic. The origin and early development of life is usually separated into a prebiotic phase and a protocellular phase, ultimately leading to the Last Universal Common Ancestor. Most likely, the Last Universal Common Ancestor was subject to Darwinian evolution, but the question remains to what extent Darwinian evolution applies to the prebiotic and protocellular phases. In this review, we reflect on the current status of evolutionary theory in origins of life research by bringing together philosophy of science, evolutionary biology, and empirical research in the origins field. We explore the various ways in which evolutionary theory has been extended beyond biology; we look at how these extensions apply to the prebiotic development of (proto)metabolism; and we investigate how the terminology from evolutionary theory is currently being employed in state-of-the-art origins of life research. In doing so, we identify some of the current obstacles to an evolutionary account of the origins of life, as well as open up new avenues of research.

Funder

Konrad Lorenz Institute for Evolution and Cognition Research

Deutsche Forschungsgemeinschaft

Wenner-Gren Foundation

Publisher

MDPI AG

Cited by 1 articles. 订阅此论文施引文献 订阅此论文施引文献,注册后可以免费订阅5篇论文的施引文献,订阅后可以查看论文全部施引文献

1. A primitive cell model involving Vesicles, microtubules and asters;Journal of Colloid and Interface Science;2024-12

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