A chemically fuelled self-replicator
The continuous consumption of chemical energy powers biological systems so that they can operate functional supramolecular structures. A goal of modern science is to understand how simple chemical mixtures may transition from non-living components to truly emergent systems and the production of new...
| Main Authors: | , , |
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| Format: | Journal article |
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Springer Nature
2019
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| _version_ | 1826294189309034496 |
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| author | Morrow, S Colomer, I Fletcher, S |
| author_facet | Morrow, S Colomer, I Fletcher, S |
| author_sort | Morrow, S |
| collection | OXFORD |
| description | The continuous consumption of chemical energy powers biological systems so that they can operate functional supramolecular structures. A goal of modern science is to understand how simple chemical mixtures may transition from non-living components to truly emergent systems and the production of new lifelike materials and machines. In this work a replicator can be maintained out-of-equilibrium by the continuous consumption of chemical energy. The system is driven by the autocatalytic formation of a metastable surfactant whose breakdown products are converted back into building blocks by a chemical fuel. The consumption of fuel allows the high-energy replicators to persist at a steady state, much like a simple metabolic cycle. Thermodynamically-driven reactions effect a unidirectional substrate flux as the system tries to regain equilibrium. The metastable replicator persists at a higher concentration than achieved even transiently in a closed system, and its concentration is responsive to the rate of fuel supply. |
| first_indexed | 2024-03-07T03:41:48Z |
| format | Journal article |
| id | oxford-uuid:be24fff0-f36e-4890-ac3b-6a3abd32a019 |
| institution | University of Oxford |
| last_indexed | 2024-03-07T03:41:48Z |
| publishDate | 2019 |
| publisher | Springer Nature |
| record_format | dspace |
| spelling | oxford-uuid:be24fff0-f36e-4890-ac3b-6a3abd32a0192022-03-27T05:37:06ZA chemically fuelled self-replicatorJournal articlehttp://purl.org/coar/resource_type/c_dcae04bcuuid:be24fff0-f36e-4890-ac3b-6a3abd32a019Symplectic Elements at OxfordSpringer Nature2019Morrow, SColomer, IFletcher, SThe continuous consumption of chemical energy powers biological systems so that they can operate functional supramolecular structures. A goal of modern science is to understand how simple chemical mixtures may transition from non-living components to truly emergent systems and the production of new lifelike materials and machines. In this work a replicator can be maintained out-of-equilibrium by the continuous consumption of chemical energy. The system is driven by the autocatalytic formation of a metastable surfactant whose breakdown products are converted back into building blocks by a chemical fuel. The consumption of fuel allows the high-energy replicators to persist at a steady state, much like a simple metabolic cycle. Thermodynamically-driven reactions effect a unidirectional substrate flux as the system tries to regain equilibrium. The metastable replicator persists at a higher concentration than achieved even transiently in a closed system, and its concentration is responsive to the rate of fuel supply. |
| spellingShingle | Morrow, S Colomer, I Fletcher, S A chemically fuelled self-replicator |
| title | A chemically fuelled self-replicator |
| title_full | A chemically fuelled self-replicator |
| title_fullStr | A chemically fuelled self-replicator |
| title_full_unstemmed | A chemically fuelled self-replicator |
| title_short | A chemically fuelled self-replicator |
| title_sort | chemically fuelled self replicator |
| work_keys_str_mv | AT morrows achemicallyfuelledselfreplicator AT colomeri achemicallyfuelledselfreplicator AT fletchers achemicallyfuelledselfreplicator AT morrows chemicallyfuelledselfreplicator AT colomeri chemicallyfuelledselfreplicator AT fletchers chemicallyfuelledselfreplicator |