Abstract
The appearance of life and thus of biomacromolecules on Earth is related to the presence ofsmall organic molecules, polymerized under prebiotic environmental conditions. However,none of proteins, polynucleotides or polysaccharides taken individually is a truebiomacromolecule, because biomacromolecules result from mutual involvements in complexbiological processes. Logically, the biomacromolecules involved in the first living cells werefirst macromolecules formed under early Earth environmental conditions. The appearance ofsuch living cells required macromolecules with fundamental features like controlledsynthesis and structures, compatibility with aqueous media, chirality, memory, replication,and recycling that had to respect corresponding fundamentals of polymer science referred toas polymerology. After a recall of relevant basics of chemical reactions, the prebioticappearance of macromolecules is critically compared with today’s polymer science includingchirality, stability, degradation, and recycling. Instead of providing arguments in favor ofconsistent routes to the first biomacromolecules, the reference to polymerology emphasizesobstacles that complement those occasionally found in the origin of life literature. In front ofthis conclusion, the discussion is extended to the other ends of these routes, i.e. today’sbiomacromolecules. The comparison with polymerology emphasizes the pertinence of thenatural choices that led to the outstanding smartness of biomacromolecules. Polymerology isstill in its cradle after less than a century of existence. For the future, it is suggested to payincreasing attention to chiral, multimeric multifunctional macromolecules to enrich thepopulation of smart polymers, to solve the problem of plastic pollution, and, maybe, toenlighten the mystery of biomacromolecules emergence under unfavorable conditions.