JamesMoriarty123 wrote...
If you ever had a chance to study Prion Proteins you will know that DNA isn't necessary for a living thing to replicate and reproduce. Doubtless we are the only 2 here who understand science talk which is why I wont elaborate. Remember this is still a work of fiction, a space opera. It isn't "hard" sci-fi ala Isaac Asimov.
Interesting debate though.
Prions are not alive. Nor do they reproduce. Prion proteins are manufactured by cells. Sometimes they get misfolded, producing what's usually called the scrapie form, named after the prion disease occurring in sheep. These misfolded proteins are capable of interacting with normally folded prion protein and inducing it to misfold, producing more scrapie prions. They are not living, they're just proteins that are able to refold other proteins to match their conformation.
Certainly DNA is not necessary, but some sort of genetic material is. I'm saying that an independently evolved life form will not evolve to use DNA. The use of DNA by life forms on our planet is probably a frozen accident, produced by chance and maintained because it happened to work.