Correlation between equi-partition of aminoacyl-tRNA synthetases and amino-acid biosynthesis pathways

Abstract

The partition of aminoacyl-tRNA synthetases (aaRSs) into two classes of equal size and the correlated amino acid distribution is a puzzling still unexplained observation. We propose that the time scale of the amino-acid synthesis, assumed to be proportional to the number of reaction steps (NE) involved in the biosynthesis pathway, is one of the parameters that controlled the timescale of aaRSs appearance. Because all pathways are branched at fructose-6-phosphate on the metabolic pathway, this product is defined as the common origin for the NE comparison. For each amino-acid, the NE value, counted from the origin to the final product, provides a timescale for the pathways to be established. An archeological approach based on NE reveals that aaRSs of the two classes are generated in pair along this timescale. The results support the coevolution theory for the origin of the genetic code with an earlier appearance of class II aaRSs.