Understanding The Genetic Code.

The universal triple nucleotide genetic code is often viewed as a given, randomly selected through evolution. However, as summarized in this article, many observations and deductions within structural and thermodynamic frameworks help to explain the forces that must have shaped the code during the early evolution of life on Earth. Importance In this minireview, many revealing aspects of the "universal" genetic code are described and discussed. These characteristics, taken together, can be rationalized in a thermodynamic context with conceptualization of its overall construction. They additionally provide guidelines for suggested pathways for its evolution. The contents of this article are relevant to an understanding of the potential evolutionary pathways whereby life itself could have arisen.