Replication and transcription of the genetic information rely on the incorporation of nucleotides at the terminus of a primer. In a prebiotic world without enzyme-catalyzed processes, RNA may have been replicating itself, as it displays catalytic properties. In this thesis, the aim was to established how first replicating systems may have emerged from inanimate material. For this, a quantitative understanding of template-directed enzyme-free primer extension with monomers and dimers was sought.
