Proteins carry out much of the biochemistry of life,including DNA replication,but DNA stores the information needed to build correct proteins.Early life forms would have needed both proteins and DNA,but neither can exist without the other.The RNA world hypothesis is an appealing solution to this problem,because it states that ________.

Question

Quizplus · Accepted Answer

The RNA world hypothesis states that some RNA molecules, known as ribozymes, were able to perform both functions of storing information and catalyzing chemical reactions. This would have allowed for the evolution of proteins and DNA in early life forms. Option A is incorrect because RNA cannot evolve into DNA by natural selection; rather, DNA evolved from RNA through a process called reverse transcription. Option B is incorrect because proteins cannot store the information needed for their own synthesis as they are synthesized based on information stored in DNA or RNA. Option C is incorrect because RNA is actually less chemically stable than DNA. Option D is incorrect because the nucleotides of RNA are not chemically similar to amino acids.

Proteins Carry Out Much of the Biochemistry of Life,including DNA