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Nilanjan Bhowmick AIR 3, CSIR NET (Earth Science)
- IIT JAM
- Geology (GG)
What is clay molecule hypothesis ?
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Rahul kumar
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The Clay molecule hypothesis was proposed by organic chemist Alexander Graham Cairns-Smith who believed that the first molecules of life met on clay. He held that these surfaces might not only have concentrated these organic compounds together, but also helped organize them into patterns much like our genes do now. He suggested that mineral crystals in clay could have arranged organic molecules into organized patterns. After a while, organic molecules took over this job and organized themselves. Basically the essence of this hypothesis is the concept that life can be embedded into a solid substance (clay) and that the early clays could have acted as "chemical factories" for processing organic materials into the more complex molecules from which the first life arose. See the attached figure.
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Sajan sarthak![best-answer]()
The clay hypothesis suggests how biologically inert matter helped the evolution of early life forms: clay minerals form naturally from silicates in solution. Clay crystals, as other crystals, preserve their external formal arrangement as they grow,. There follows a process of natural selection for clay crystals that trap certain forms of molecules to their surfaces that may enhance their replication potential. Complex proto-organic molecules can be catalysed by the surface properties of silicates. When complex molecules perform a "genetic takeover" from their clay "vehicle", they become an independent locus of replication – an evolutionary moment that might be understood as the first exaptation.