Life. Death. Immortality.: The Reign of the Genome (The Frontiers Collection)

What are life and death? Is it possible to understand their essence and give clear definitions? Countless books and articles have been devoted to trying to answer these intriguing questions. However, there are still no definite and generally accepted answers. The intrigue remains. And meanwhile, human attempts to vanquish death and achieve immortality continue apace. This book is an attempt to answer the eternal questions about life and death by analyzing, synthesizing, and rethinking the known facts that characterize life. The material here should be of particular interest, as it contains many hypotheses, philosophical generalizations, and well informed speculations. What is most important for life - matter, energy, or information? How are individual lives and the phenomenon of life in general related? What serves what – does the genome serve the cell or does the cell serve the genome? What is the value of life and death? Can we become immortal? The inquisitive reader willfind original answers to these and other exciting questions in the pages of this stimulating book. Title Copyright Epigraph Preface About This Book Contents Part I Phenomenon of Life 1 Basics 1.1 The Ambiguity of Life 1.2 The Main Feature of the Earth 1.3 The Material Backbone of Life 1.4 The Energy Backbone of Life 1.5 The Nucleic Acid Backbone of Life 1.6 The Protein Backbone of Life 1.7 The Aqueous Backbone of Life 1.8 The Thermodynamic Backbone of Life 1.9 The Catalytic Backbone of Life 1.10 The Systemic Backbone of Life 1.11 Compartmentalization 1.12 The Informational Backbone of Life 1.13 Cellular Life 1.14 Non-cellular Life 1.14.1 Viruses 1.14.2 Cellular-Viral System of Life 1.14.3 Molecular-Genetic Communication 1.14.4 Are Viruses Living Organisms? 1.15 Hidden Life 1.16 Summary Part II Planetary System of Life 2 The Unified System 2.1 Living Bodies Are the Organizers of the Planetary System of Life 2.2 All Life Comes from Life 2.3 Levels of Organization of Life 2.4 Self-organization and Emergent Properties of Living Systems 2.5 The Illusion of Diversity 2.6 Genomes, Phenomes, and the Planetary System of Life 2.7 Summary Part III Living Bodies. Individual Life 3 Eukaryotic Cells 3.1 The Main Characteristics of Cells 3.2 The Main Body Parts of Cells 3.2.1 Nucleus—The Site of the Genome 3.2.2 Cytoplasm—The Site of the Phenome 3.2.3 Surface Apparatus and Biological Membranes 3.3 Cellular Nanoconstruction 3.4 Cells and Their Fragments in Vitro 3.5 Why is the Cell Needed? 3.6 Summary 4 Multicellular Organisms 4.1 Cells and Multicellular Organisms 4.2 A Living Organism is the Phenotypic Framework of Its Genome 4.3 Summary 5 General Characteristics of Living Bodies 5.1 Principles of Organization of Living Bodies 5.2 Motion and Activity 5.3 Biological Expediency 5.4 Biological Versatility 5.5 Fractality 5.6 Bioautonomy as the Basis for Independent Existence 5.6.1 Self-Organization 5.6.2 Self-Regulation 5.6.3 Self-Preservation 5.6.4 Self-Repair 5.6.5 Self-Sufficiency 5.6.6 Self-Reproduction 5.6.7 Self-Construction 5.6.8 Homeostasis 5.7 Summary Part IV The Nature of Vitality in Living Bodies 6 Basic Properties and Functions 6.1 Nutrition and Digestion 6.2 Water Consumption 6.3 Respiration 6.4 Excretion 6.5 Motion 6.6 Reproduction 6.7 Summary 7 Basic Processes and Mechanisms 7.1 Bodies, Processes, Mechanisms, Interactions, States, and Functions 7.2 Enzyme Catalysis 7.3 Transformation of Substances and Energy 7.4 Thermodynamic Mechanisms 7.5 Electrostatic and Electrodynamic Mechanisms 7.6 Quantum Mechanisms 7.7 Informational-Genetic Processes and Mechanisms 7.8 Cytological and Cytogenetic Macroprocesses and Mechanisms 7.9 Intracellular Functional Systems 7.10 Functional Associations of Cells 7.11 Summary Part V Genesis and Evolution 8 Genesis 8.1 The Probability of Life 8.2 The Main Stages of Phylogenesis 8.2.1 Emergence of the Pattern of Organization of Living Bodies 8.2.2 Emergence of Living Bodies and Individual Life 8.2.3 Emergence of the Planetary System of Life 8.2.4 The Emergence of Death and Immortality 8.3 The Role of Temperature 8.4 Properties of Genomes and Evolution 8.4.1 Heredity 8.4.2 Variation 8.4.3 Natural Selection 8.4.4 Evolution 8.4.5 Co-evolution 8.4.6 Symbiogenesis 8.4.7 Gene Exchange 8.4.8 Bioinfogenesis and Infobiogenesis 8.5 Summary Part VI Reproduction and Development 9 Self-reproduction of Genomes and Living Bodies 9.1 The Purpose of Reproduction 9.2 Types of Reproduction 9.2.1 Asexual Reproduction 9.2.2 Sexual Reproduction 9.2.3 Gametes as a Transitory Form of Genomes 9.2.4 Gametogenesis is the Process of Transformation of Genomes 9.2.5 Fertilization as Integration of Genomes 9.2.6 The Zygote as the Beginning of a New Life for Genomes 9.3 Division of Cells and Their Genomes 9.3.1 Interphase 9.3.2 Mitosis 9.3.3 Chromosomal Cycle 9.4 Meiosis 9.5 The Role of the Genome in Reproduction 9.6 Transit of Genomes 9.7 Exchange of Living Bodies (and Genomes) 9.8 Reproduction as a Means of Survival for Genomes 9.9 Summary 10 Development or Self-construction 10.1 Genesis and Individual Development 10.2 Growth and Development 10.3 Development Mechanisms in Complex Organisms 10.4 Differentiation 10.5 Summary Part VII The Inevitability of Death and the Mechanisms of Survival 11 Life Expectancy, Aging, and Death of Living Bodies 11.1 Life Expectancy 11.2 Aging 11.3 Death 11.3.1 Death of Cells 11.3.2 Death of Multicellular Organisms 11.4 The Ambiguity of Death 11.5 Phenotypic Death and Genotypic Immortality 11.6 The Illusion of Death and the Illusion of Life 11.7 The Value and the Price of Individual Life and Death 11.8 Summary 12 Survival Pathways for Living Bodies and Their Genomes 12.1 Maintaining Integrity and Homeostasis: Self-repair 12.2 Reproduction of Genomes 12.3 Adaptation and Evolution 12.4 Hypobiosis and Anabiosis 12.5 The Purpose of the Lives of Individuals 12.6 The Strategy of Monolithic Coexistence 12.7 Summary Part VIII Power of the Genome 13 Cognitiveness of Living Bodies 13.1 Information and Control Principles 13.2 Informativeness of Matter 13.3 Biothesaurus 13.4 Entropy and Information 13.5 Information and Levels of Development 13.6 Living Computers 13.7 Genetic Information 13.7.1 Basics of Organization and Application 13.7.2 Simultaneous Transformations of Matter and Information 13.7.3 Carriers and Information 13.7.4 Properties and Characteristics of Genetic Information 13.8 Summary 14 Materials, Devices, and Mechanisms of the Genome 14.1 Genome 14.1.1 Repository of Information 14.1.2 Structural and Functional System 14.2 Stem Molecules of Life 14.3 Genetic Material 14.3.1 Chromatin 14.3.2 Chromosomes 14.3.3 Karyotype 14.4 Genes 14.5 Genetic Code 14.6 Expression 14.7 Template Processes. Copying and Cloning 14.8 Functional Systems of Genes 14.9 Directed Genome Rearrangements 14.10 Transgenesis 14.11 Summary Part IX The Dual Nature of the Phenomenon of Life 15 Living Bodies and the Planetary System 15.1 The Duality of Life 15.2 The Nature of Living Bodies 15.3 The Nature of the Planetary System and the Phenomenon of Life 16 Matter and Information 17 Genomes and Their Bodies 17.1 The Cell is for the Genome 17.2 Dual Unity of Genome and Phenome 17.3 Species of Genomes 17.4 Global Phenome and Global Genome 17.5 Phenotypic and Genotypic Life 17.6 Summary Part X Immortality 18 Information Constancy 18.1 Time, Space, and Life 18.2 The Emergence and Death of Organisms 18.3 Genomic Cycles 18.4 Info-Genetic Continuity 19 Conclusion: Dictatorship of the Genome Glossary Bibliography What are life and death? Is it possible to understand their essence and give clear definitions? Countless books and articles have been devoted to trying to answer these intriguing questions. However, there are still no definite and generally accepted answers. The intrigue remains. And meanwhile, human attempts to vanquish death and achieve immortality continue apace. This book is an attempt to answer the eternal questions about life and death by analyzing, synthesizing, and rethinking the known facts that characterize life. The material here should be of particular interest, as it contains many hypotheses, philosophical generalizations, and well informed speculations. What is most important for life - matter, energy, or information? How are individual lives and the phenomenon of life in general related? What serves what does the genome serve the cell or does the cell serve the genome? What is the value of life and death? Can we become immortal? The inquisitive reader will find original answers to these and other exciting questions in the pages of this stimulating book