Gánti Tibor: A Theory of Biochemical Supersystems and its Application for Natural and Artificial Biogenesis (London, 1979)
A THEORY OF BIOCHEMICAL SUPERSYSTEMS and its Application to Problems of Natural and Artificial Biogenesis by TIBOR GAIíTI This book examines one of the most hasié questions of biology: how inanimate organic matter became organized as living systems. Basing his theory on a clearly established set of criteria that distinguish the living and non-living worlds, Tibor Gánti, the renowned Hungarian scientist, answers this question through a study of the chemoton. He creates a precise model in which chemotons, chemical supersystems characterized by special chemical stoichiometry and kinetics, develop from known chemical systems. He then shows that the chemoton fulfils r11 the criteria of life and concludes that it is the theoretically simplest living system, the basic biological unit. In later chapters the author uses the chemoton model as a basis for discussions of the structure of genetic material, the spontaneous genesis of life from primordial organic matter, and the possibility of artifically synthesizing living systems and hereditary mechanisms. He also outlines the potential use of computers in simulating the work of the chemoton. A Theory of Biochemical Supersystems presents a major new theory that will be of interest to all theoretical biologists, especially those studying the origins of life. It is an important acquisition for all scientific libraries.