<< Tom, I'm not getting the picture you are drawing.  The A at the
end of a modern CCA is attached to a single 5' phosphate, which
is in turn attached to the middle C at its 3' site.
But now you say that this A was an ATP.  That means three phosphate
groups.  Where do they go?
 >>


You are the 2nd to point this out. It was a bad idea.
My speculation was weak and too quickly posted.

In reading I found this idea which makes more sense.
Instead of the ATP being the connector between AA's
and nucleotides - it suggests a simpler idea
that seems more feasible:

"Biochemists have suggested that polyphosphate chains
may have provided some of the first organismic energy
sources, and the adenosine component in ATP added
later to act as a label that would allow enzymatic recognition." Strickberger -
Evolution.

Now building on that idea - perhaps the polyphosphate
chains, not the ATP connected these early nucleotides
on this naked stem with amino acids.
That would seem like a more feasible idea and one
that could well be quite early on.

Now combine this with the dimer selection, and we
have a vague yet intrigueing idea of how amino acids
and nucleotides could have come together early on.

And where I said ATP was the magnet , I would adjust
to saying polyphosphate chains would be. Then wherever they are, those
prebiotic life molecules clustered by chance around them, would have better
chance with chemical selection (my zorchtock or zor for short) because they
would be around a chemical energy source in water.

Comment?
---
þ RIMEGate(tm)/RGXPost V1.14 at BBSWORLD * Info{at}bbsworld.com

---
 * RIMEGate(tm)V10.2áÿ* RelayNet(tm) NNTP Gateway * MoonDog BBS
 * RgateImp.MoonDog.BBS at 6/9/04 10:37:10 PM