The lost language of the RNA World

The possibility of an RNA World is based on the notion that life on Earth passed through a primitive phase without proteins, a time when all genomes and enzymes were composed of ribonucleic acids. Numerous apparent vestiges of this ancient RNA World remain today, including many nucleotide-derived coenzymes, self-processing ribozymes, metabolite-binding riboswitches, and even ribosomes. Many of the most common signaling molecules and second messengers used by modern organisms are also formed from