Revisiting Crick?s Dogma and the Impossibility of Reverse Translation

Abstract

The origin, validity and role of the so-called “Central Dogma” of Molecular Biology are reviewed. This survey leads to the conclusion that after the pioneering days of the new discipline, during which the Dogma provided a preliminary orientation in the newly discovered world of nucleic acid and protein sequences, its value probably expired. It fulfilled a function for over 50 years but its subsequent rise to almost unchallengeable status is no longer compatible with the fundamental spirit of any natural science. Therefore I suggest that Crick’s Dogma be reconsidered and reallocated to the field to which it belongs today: historical ideas in molecular biology.