The process by which chemistry can give rise to biology remains one of the biggest mysteries in contemporary science. The de novo synthesis and origin of life both require the functional integration of three key characteristics — replication, metabolism and compartmentalization — into a system that is maintained out of equilibrium and is capable of open-ended Darwinian evolution. This Review takes systems of self-replicating molecules as starting points and describes the steps necessary to integrate additional characteristics of life. We analyse how far experimental self-replicators have come in terms of Darwinian evolution. We also cover models of replicator communities that attempt to solve Eigen’s paradox, whereby accurate replication needs complex machinery yet obtaining such complex self-replicators through evolution requires accurate replication. Successful models rely on a collective metabolism and a way of (transient) compartmentalization, suggesting that the invention and integration of these two characteristics is driven by evolution. Despite our growing knowledge, there remain numerous key challenges that may be addressed by a combined theoretical and experimental approach.

化学产生生物学的过程仍然是当代科学中最大的谜团之一。从头合成和生命起源都需要将三个关键特征——复制、新陈代谢和区室化——功能整合到一个保持失衡并能够进行开放式达尔文进化的系统中。本综述以自我复制分子系统为起点，描述了整合生命其他特征的必要步骤。我们分析了实验性自我复制器在达尔文进化论方面的进展情况。我们还介绍了试图解决 Eigen 悖论的复制子社区模型，准确的复制需要复杂的机器，而通过进化获得如此复杂的自我复制器需要准确的复制。成功的模型依赖于集体新陈代谢和一种（瞬时）区室化方式，这表明这两个特征的发明和整合是由进化驱动的。尽管我们的知识不断增长，但仍有许多关键挑战可以通过理论和实验相结合的方法来解决。