Enzymes catalyze cellular chemistry, ultimately enabling life to exist. They are complex and specialized protein catalysts formed by millions of years of evolution. In modern cells, enzymes, and the metabolic reactions accelerated by them, are often localized within highly specialized and organized membrane-bound or membrane-less cellular compartments. In short, catalysis and compartmentalization are intertwined central traits of life and must have been important factors that shaped its emergence. Several questions surround the emergence of both life traits: Did primordial metabolic reaction networks precede the complex protein apparatuses that now enabled them? What catalysts did enable such prebiotic reactions, and how did they later evolve into enzymes? How did prebiotic compartmentalization influence the catalytic processes? Over the years, many hypotheses have been proposed to explain life’s emergence, primarily based on the intrinsic properties of individual molecules (e.g., RNA) or environments (e.g., warm little ponds or hydrothermal vents). With this Special Issue, we chose to explore the role of prebiotic catalysis and its relation to compartmentalization from various at times contrasting viewpoints. Here, we aim to support more holistic approaches that tie together all life’s key features and, in particular, close the gap between abiotic and biotic reactions and scaffolds. An open discussion of different viewpoints is often the basis of novel scientific developments; it also brought this Special Issue to life, connecting us editors across different research fields. We come from different scientific backgrounds, focus on different questions concerning prebiotic chemistry, and have different opinions on life’s emergence. Nevertheless, we always find common ground from which interesting scientific questions, which could be addressed by both of us together, arise. We think this overall spirit is also reflected in this Special Issue, which shows a variety of opinions, approaches, and disciplines that could provide insights and inspiration to uncover how life emerged from nonliving matter. This article has not yet been cited by other publications.

中文翻译：

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从生命出现的化学到生命的化学


酶催化细胞化学，最终使生命得以存在。它们是经过数百万年进化形成的复杂而特殊的蛋白质催化剂。在现代细胞中，酶及其加速的代谢反应通常位于高度专业化和有序的膜结合或无膜细胞区室中。简而言之，催化和区室化是生命交织在一起的核心特征，一定是塑造其出现的重要因素。围绕这两种生命特征的出现存在几个问题：原始代谢反应网络是否先于现在使它们成为可能的复杂蛋白质装置？哪些催化剂促成了这种益生元反应，它们后来又是如何演变成酶的？益生元区室化如何影响催化过程？多年来，人们提出了许多假说来解释生命的出现，主要基于单个分子（例如 RNA）或环境（例如温暖的小池塘或热液喷口）的内在特性。在本期特刊中，我们选择从各种有时截然不同的角度探讨益生元催化的作用及其与区室化的关系。在这里，我们的目标是支持更全面的方法，将生命的所有关键特征联系在一起，特别是缩小非生物和生物反应与支架之间的差距。对不同观点的公开讨论通常是新的科学发展的基础;它还使本期特刊栩栩如生，将不同研究领域的美国编辑联系起来。我们来自不同的科学背景，关注有关益生元化学的不同问题，对生命的出现也有不同的看法。 尽管如此，我们总能找到共同点，从中产生有趣的科学问题，这些问题可以由我们双方共同解决。我们认为这种整体精神也反映在本期特刊中，它展示了各种观点、方法和学科，可以提供见解和灵感，以揭示生命是如何从无生命物质中出现的。本文尚未被其他出版物引用。