The theoretical construct of an organism that has not yet developed a genotype-phenotype distinction.
- 1977
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Organism[s] […] in the throes of evolving the genotype-phenotype relationship, are properly designated progenotes
Woese, C.R. & Fox, G.E. (1977). The concept of cellular evolution. J. Molec. Evol. 10, 1-6: 3.
- 1979
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the Progenote – the revolutionary inventor of the information systems of all modern organisms
Nanney, D.L. (1979). [Rev. Ragan, M.A. & Chapman, D.J. (1978). A Biochemical Phylogeny of the Protists]. American Scientist 67, 109.
- 1987
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The progenote is a theoretical construct, an entity that, by definition, has a rudimentary, imprecise linkage between its genotype and phenotype […]. (Extant organisms, which have precise, accurate links between genotype and phenotype, are then genotes.)
Woese, C.R. (1987). Bacterial evolution. Microbiol. Rev. 51, 221-271: 263.