Template principle in biology (the past, the present, the future?)

Abstract

Discovery of DNA double structure is a symbol of establishment of the template principle in biology of the XX century. Template processes (replication, transcription, translation) have several common characteristics: they proceed in three consequent steps - initiation, elongation and termination and are followed by correction or repair. All of them possess the character of polyvarian-cy, which means that they arc carried by enzymatic systems composed of interchangeable components, which operate with different precision. There may be enzymatic components, identical or closely related by structure, which are involved in different template processes. Along with linear templates (DNA, RNA) so called first order templates there are space or conformational templates in the cell. The latter ones are represented by some proteins, which can change their conformation, memorize it and transfer to newly synthesized homologous polypeptides (second order templates). The second order templates may interact either with each other or with the first order templates. Knowledge about relations between different template processes in the cell brings a new glance on mutual influence of different types of variability and on their roles in evolution.