Abstract
A mathematical model based on Tlusty's topological deconstruction suggests that multiple punctuated ecosystem shifts in available metabolic free energy, broadly akin to the 'aerobic' transition, enabled a punctuated sequence of increasingly complex genetic codes. These evolved until the ancestor to the present narrow spectrum of nearly maximal codes became locked-in by path dependence.
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Wallace, R. Metabolic constraints on the evolution of genetic codes: Did multiple 'preaerobic' ecosystem transitions entrain richer dialects?. Nat Prec (2009). https://doi.org/10.1038/npre.2009.4120.1
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DOI: https://doi.org/10.1038/npre.2009.4120.1