[notfed]

I think the ostensibly scary subject here is mirror DNA or RNA, not anything-that-doesn't-self-replicate.

> If bacteria haven't figured out how to use mirroring

It's unclear bacteria have ever "attempted" it. The synthesis of DNA is incredibly intricate and complex, and the set of proteins that do it are believed only to have ever evolved once. In order for a bacteria to have "attempted" this, it would have to evolve an entirely new set of proteins from scratch.

Personally I think a self-replicating photosynthetic cell with mirror DNA is as scary as self-replicating photosynthetic plastic.

[Aerroon]

>It's unclear bacteria have ever "attempted" it.

They have: https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/24647559/

[Filligree]

> self-replicating photosynthetic plastic

Cellulose? It did cause quite the stir, I'll grant you.

[aydyn]

What's scary about mirrored DNA? DNA is information store proteins are actuators.

> would have to evolve an entirely new set of proteins from scratch.

Mirrored amino acids already exist in some organisms.

[notfed]

> What's scary about mirrored DNA

Exponential growth of a self-replicating cell with zero predators.

> Mirrored amino acids already exist in some organisms.

You can have an entire planet full of mirror amino acids if you want; that's not the hard part. The hard part is evolving the entire set of mirror transcription proteins.

[aydyn]

Where are you getting exponential growth without predators? That simply does not follow logically from any assumptions.