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<p>The emergence of molecular oxygen on early Earth is conventionally attributed to the evolution of oxygenic photosynthesis. A persistent challenge for early life, however, was the management of reactive oxygen species such as hydrogen peroxide (H<sub>2</sub>O<sub>2</sub>), which could arise through a variety of abiotic processes. Here we report that some RNA molecules, when coordinated with ferrous iron (Fe<sup>2+</sup>), catalyze the oxidation of H<sub>2</sub>O<sub>2</sub> into O<sub>2</sub> and H<sub>2</sub>O under anoxic conditions that mimic the early Earth environment. This previously unrecognized RNA-based redox activity suggests that ancient RNA-metal complexes may have contributed to the detoxification of H<sub>2</sub>O<sub>2</sub> and the management of oxidative stress prior to the evolution of protein enzymes. Such RNA–Fe complexes provide a plausible molecular mechanism linking early geochemical oxidants to primitive biological redox chemistry.</p>

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RNA−Iron complexes catalyse prebiotic oxygen generation

  • 期刊论文

  • 出版模式：

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  • 发表日期：

    2026年2月9日

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  • Ying-Chi Wang,
  • Jing-Hong Tu,
  • Lung-Chih Yu,
  • Chiaolong Hsiao

摘要

The emergence of molecular oxygen on early Earth is conventionally attributed to the evolution of oxygenic photosynthesis. A persistent challenge for early life, however, was the management of reactive oxygen species such as hydrogen peroxide (H2O2), which could arise through a variety of abiotic processes. Here we report that some RNA molecules, when coordinated with ferrous iron (Fe2+), catalyze the oxidation of H2O2 into O2 and H2O under anoxic conditions that mimic the early Earth environment. This previously unrecognized RNA-based redox activity suggests that ancient RNA-metal complexes may have contributed to the detoxification of H2O2 and the management of oxidative stress prior to the evolution of protein enzymes. Such RNA–Fe complexes provide a plausible molecular mechanism linking early geochemical oxidants to primitive biological redox chemistry.