Jove
Visualize
Contact Us
JoVE
x logofacebook logolinkedin logoyoutube logo
ABOUT JoVE
OverviewLeadershipBlogJoVE Help Center
AUTHORS
Publishing ProcessEditorial BoardScope & PoliciesPeer ReviewFAQSubmit
LIBRARIANS
TestimonialsSubscriptionsAccessResourcesLibrary Advisory BoardFAQ
RESEARCH
JoVE JournalMethods CollectionsJoVE Encyclopedia of ExperimentsArchive
EDUCATION
JoVE CoreJoVE BusinessJoVE Science EducationJoVE Lab ManualFaculty Resource CenterFaculty Site
Terms & Conditions of Use
Privacy Policy
Policies

Related Concept Videos

Molecular Weight of Step-Growth Polymers01:08

Molecular Weight of Step-Growth Polymers

Step growth polymerization involves bi or multifunctional monomers. Bifunctional monomers react to form linear step growth polymers, whereas multifunctional monomers react to form non-linear or branched polymers.
As the step-growth polymerization involves step-wise condensation of monomers, the molecular weight also builds up eventually. Consequently, high molecular weight polymers are obtained at the late stages of the polymerization, where 99% of monomers have been consumed.
The extent of the...
Step-Growth Polymerization: Overview01:03

Step-Growth Polymerization: Overview

Step-growth or condensation polymerization is a stepwise reaction of bi or multifunctional monomers to form long-chain polymers. As all the monomers are reactive, most of the monomers are consumed at the early stages of the reaction to form small chains of reactive oligomers, which then combine to form long polymer chains in the late stages. Hence, the reaction has to proceed for a long time to achieve high molecular weight polymers.
Many natural and synthetic polymers are produced by...
Radical Chain-Growth Polymerization: Mechanism01:09

Radical Chain-Growth Polymerization: Mechanism

The radical chain-growth polymerization mechanism consists of three steps: initiation, propagation, and termination of polymerization. The polymerization initiates when a free radical generated from the radical initiator adds to the unsaturated bond in the monomer. The unpaired electron of the free radical and one π electron in the unsaturated bond creates a σ bond between the free radical and the monomer. As a result, the other π electron in the unsaturated bond converts this species into the...
Radical Chain-Growth Polymerization: Overview01:10

Radical Chain-Growth Polymerization: Overview

Chain-growth or addition polymerization is successive addition reactions of monomers with a polymer chain. In radical chain-growth polymerization, the reaction proceeds via a free-radical intermediate. The free radical is formed from radical initiators, which spontaneously generate free radicals by homolytic fission. Organic peroxides (such as dibenzoyl peroxide, as shown in Figure 1) or azo compounds are popular radical initiators. A low concentration ratio of radical initiator to monomer is...
Ziegler–Natta Chain-Growth Polymerization: Overview01:17

Ziegler–Natta Chain-Growth Polymerization: Overview

Ziegler–Natta polymerization is another form of addition or chain‐growth polymerization used for synthesizing linear polymers over branched polymers. The catalyst used for polymerization is the Ziegler–Natta catalyst, named after Karl Ziegler and Giulio Natta, who developed it in 1953. This catalyst is an organometallic complex of titanium tetrachloride and triethyl aluminum, with the active form of the catalyst being an alkyl titanium compound. Using the Ziegler–Natta catalyst, high molecular...
Polymer Classification: Stereospecificity01:26

Polymer Classification: Stereospecificity

Polymerization generates chiral centers along the entire backbone of a polymer chain. Accordingly, the stereochemistry of the substituent group has a significant effect on polymer properties. Polymers formed from monosubstituted alkene monomers feature chiral carbons at every alternate position in the polymer backbone. Relative to the predominant orientation of substituents at the adjacent chiral carbons, the polymer can exist in three different configurations: isotactic, syndiotactic, and...

You might also read

Related Articles

Articles linked to this work by shared authors, journal, and citation graph.

Sort by
Same author

Sequence motif dynamics in RNA pools.

Physical review. E·2026
Same author

Sequence and chemical specificity define the functional landscape of intrinsically disordered regions.

Nature cell biology·2026
Same author

Theory for sequence selection via phase separation and oligomerization.

Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences of the United States of America·2026
Same author

Magmatic immiscibility provides phosphate for prebiotic chemistry.

Science advances·2025
Same author

Toward stable replication of genomic information in pools of RNA molecules.

eLife·2025
Same author

A quantitative model of enzyme-free copying of RNA with dimers.

Nucleic acids research·2025

Related Experiment Video

Updated: May 11, 2026

Synthesis of Cyclic Polymers and Characterization of Their Diffusive Motion in the Melt State at the Single Molecule Level
06:55

Synthesis of Cyclic Polymers and Characterization of Their Diffusive Motion in the Melt State at the Single Molecule Level

Published on: September 26, 2016

Escalation of polymerization in a thermal gradient.

Christof B Mast1, Severin Schink, Ulrich Gerland

  • 1Systems Biophysics, Physics Department, Center for Nanoscience, Ludwig-Maximilians-Universität München, 80799 Munich, Germany.

Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences of the United States of America
|May 1, 2013
PubMed
Summary

A thermal gradient mechanism escalates nucleotide polymerization, enabling the formation of long RNA strands essential for early life. This process overcomes concentration limitations, significantly increasing the probability of generating complex biopolymers.

Keywords:
(nonenzymatic) emergence of RNARNA worldhydrothermal ventsmolecular evolutionnonequilibrium

More Related Videos

Ethylene Polymerizations Using Parallel Pressure Reactors and a Kinetic Analysis of Chain Transfer Polymerization
07:28

Ethylene Polymerizations Using Parallel Pressure Reactors and a Kinetic Analysis of Chain Transfer Polymerization

Published on: November 27, 2015

Rapid PCR Thermocycling using Microscale Thermal Convection
09:02

Rapid PCR Thermocycling using Microscale Thermal Convection

Published on: March 5, 2011

Related Experiment Videos

Last Updated: May 11, 2026

Synthesis of Cyclic Polymers and Characterization of Their Diffusive Motion in the Melt State at the Single Molecule Level
06:55

Synthesis of Cyclic Polymers and Characterization of Their Diffusive Motion in the Melt State at the Single Molecule Level

Published on: September 26, 2016

Ethylene Polymerizations Using Parallel Pressure Reactors and a Kinetic Analysis of Chain Transfer Polymerization
07:28

Ethylene Polymerizations Using Parallel Pressure Reactors and a Kinetic Analysis of Chain Transfer Polymerization

Published on: November 27, 2015

Rapid PCR Thermocycling using Microscale Thermal Convection
09:02

Rapid PCR Thermocycling using Microscale Thermal Convection

Published on: March 5, 2011

Area of Science:

  • Origin of life studies
  • Biochemistry
  • Geophysics

Background:

  • Biopolymer formation, like RNA, is crucial for early life.
  • High monomer concentrations (millimolar) are typically required for RNA polymerization.
  • Existing methods struggle to produce RNA strands longer than 20 bases, hindering the emergence of self-replicating ribozymes (minimal length ~200 nt).

Purpose of the Study:

  • To demonstrate a mechanism for escalating nucleotide polymerization.
  • To bridge the gap between required and achievable RNA lengths for early life.
  • To investigate the role of thermal gradients in biopolymer formation.

Main Methods:

  • Theoretical modeling of nucleotide polymerization within a spatially confined thermal gradient.
  • Incorporation of thermophoresis and convection for monomer accumulation and polymer retention.
  • Experimental validation using reversible DNA polymerization in a laser-driven thermal trap.

Main Results:

  • A hyperexponential escalation of polymer length driven by mutually self-enhancing polymerization and accumulation.
  • Prediction that a 5 cm pore with a 10 K temperature difference can yield 200-nt RNA in micromolar concentrations from nanomolar monomers.
  • Experimental confirmation of enhanced polymerization in a thermal gradient.

Conclusions:

  • Thermal gradients provide a viable mechanism for overcoming limitations in primordial RNA polymerization.
  • This process significantly increases the probability (>10^600) of generating long, catalytically active RNA molecules.
  • The findings expand the potential sequence space for the emergence of early life.