Question

Assertion: Coacervates are believed to the precursor of life
Reason: Coacervates were self-duplicating aggregates of proteins surrounded by lipids molecules.
A. Both Assertion and Reason are correct and reason is the correct explanation for assertion
B. Both Assertion and Reason are correct but reason is not the correct explanation for the Assertion
C. Assertion is correct but Reason is not correct
D. Both assertion and Reason is incorrect

Answer 1

Hint: Coacervates are like living cells, they can take nutrition from their surroundings and can grow under suitable conditions but they can not maintain their temperature and also cannot produce their own kind. Coacervates do not reproduce due to the absence of the lipid layer.

Complete answer: Before discussing the answer let first understand immiscible liquid. The liquid that can not dissolve or mix with each other is called immiscible liquids. For example, oil and water are immiscible liquids. Coacervates is a fluid-filled droplet formed in dilute aqueous solutions, whose boundary develops as a film of bound water molecules. Small droplets of liquid of two immiscible liquids are called coacervates. Scientists proposed the coacervates model. According to this model when water-free mixtures of amino acids are heated at high temperature, they polymerize to form protein-like molecules, called proteinoids. Here in this model coacervates are protobionts and protobionts give birth to eobionts. Protobionts evolve into true life forms, i.e. eobionts. Hence coacervates were believed to be the precursor of life. But coacervates have no lipid outer layer hence coacervates cannot reproduce.
Hence, the correct option is 'C'.

Note: Coacervates model was proposed by Alexander Oparin. The origin of true life form, eobiont form a protobiont involves the acquisition of three major features: Assembly of phospholipids and proteins into a cell membrane forms the boundary of the cell, development of protein-directed metabolic pathways to utilize the organic molecules energy needs, and the formation of nucleic acid molecules that are not only capable of self-replication but also capable of strong genetic information for the synthesis of proteins.