Spatio-temporal dynamics in the origin of genetic information

Abstract

We study evolutionary processes induced by spatio-temporal dynamics in prebiotic evolution. Using numerical simulations, we demonstrate that hypercycles emerge from complex interaction structures in multispecies systems. in this work, we also find that 'hypercycle hybrid' protects the hypercycle from its environment during the growth process. There is little selective advantage for one hypercycle to maintain coexistence with others. This brings the possibility of the outcompetition between hypercycles resulting in the negative effect on information diversity. To enrich the information in hypercycles, symbiosis with parasites is suggested. It is shown that symbiosis with parasites can play an important role in the prebiotic immunology. © 2005 Elsevier B.V. All rights reserved.