Patrick Forterre's hypothesis states that an RNA virus infected a cell to form the last universal common ancestor (LUCA).

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Patrick Forterre's hypothesis suggests that LUCA is the ancestor of all life on Earth and was a cellular organism that existed around 3.5 to 4 billion years ago. While he proposes that RNA viruses played a key role in the evolution of life, he does not suggest that they directly gave rise to LUCA.

Patrick Forterre's Hypothesis States That an RNA Virus Infected a Cell