Table 1 Strengths and weaknesses of the reviewed scenarios for the origin of Darwinian evolution
Scenarios | Initial Chemical Substrate | Experimental Data on main Hypothesis | Energy Source | Chiral Question | Multiplication abilities | Heredity | Plausible Sites | Evolutionary Path | Initial Evolution Claimed | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
Metabolism-First | Iron-sulfur world | Pioneer organism | Lacking | Volcanic-hydrothermal fluids | Not an issue according to the author | Not truly present | Not clearly demonstrated | Volcanic aquifers | Questionable | Pre-Darwinian |
Vasas et al. | Lacking | Lacking | Not specified | Not addressed | Present | Abstract | Not specified | Plausible | Darwinian | |
Fernando & Rowe | Lipid vesicles | Lacking | Solar | Not addressed | Present | Some | Not specified | Complex | Pre-Darwinian | |
Russell | Inorganic membranes | Preliminary | White smokers | Not addressed | Unknown | No | White smokers | Questionable | Pre-Darwinian | |
Replicator-First | RNA/Pre-RNA world | RNA or pre-RNA | Present | Not specified | Not addressed | Present | Present | Not specified | Plausible | Pre-Darwinian |
Combined | DKS | Lacking | Lacking | Solar | Not addressed | Not truly present | Not addressed | Not clearly specified | Questionable | Darwinian |
Lancet & Segré | Lipid micelles | Lacking | Volcanoes, hydrothermal vents, solar | Not an issue according to the author | Present | Questionable | Volcanoes, hydrothermal vents, solar | Questionable | Pre-Darwinian | |
Tessera | Lipid vesicles | Lacking | White smokers | Possibly solved | Present | Present | White smokers | Possibly handicapped in the polymerization process | Darwinian | |