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Caster KL, Seifert NA, Ruscic B, Jasper AW, Prozument K. Dynamics of HCN, HNC, and HNCO Formation in the 193 nm Photodissociation of Formamide. J Phys Chem A 2024. [PMID: 39225655 DOI: 10.1021/acs.jpca.4c02232] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 09/04/2024]
Abstract
Formamide (NH2CHO) is the simplest molecule containing a peptide linkage [-NH-C(═O)-], and it plays an essential role in the study of prebiotic chemistry. Exposure to UV irradiation allows formamide to decompose and act as a prebiotic feedstock in the formation of nucleobases and other necessary starting materials. The photodissociation mechanism of gaseous formamide at 193 nm is studied using (a) chirped-pulse Fourier transform millimeter-wave spectroscopy in the 260-290 GHz spectral region in a room-temperature flow-tube reactor at 1 μbar pressure, (b) a combination of electronic structure theory, transition state theory, and quasiclassical trajectories, and (c) the Active Thermochemical Tables. The HCN and HNC photoproducts of hydrogenated (NH2CHO) and deuterated (NH2CDO and ND2CHO) formamide precursors are examined to gain insight into the photodissociation mechanism. The theoretical investigation has characterized the main pathway leading to each of the HCN/HNC isomers from the precursor isotopologues. The theoretical branching ratio [HNC]/[HCN] = 2.1 for nascent photofragments agrees with the experiment. The effect of the postphotolysis HNC ↔ HCN isomerization on the [HNC]/[HCN] ratio is predicted. We report the experimental branching ratio [HNCO]: ([HNC] + [HCN]) = 12 ± 3 and propose that most of HNCO originates from dissociation on the S1 electronic state of formamide.
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Affiliation(s)
- Kacee L Caster
- Chemical Sciences and Engineering Division, Argonne National Laboratory, Lemont, Illinois 60439, United States
| | - Nathan A Seifert
- Chemical Sciences and Engineering Division, Argonne National Laboratory, Lemont, Illinois 60439, United States
- Department of Chemistry and Chemical & Biomedical Engineering, University of New Haven, West Haven, Connecticut 06516, United States
| | - Branko Ruscic
- Chemical Sciences and Engineering Division, Argonne National Laboratory, Lemont, Illinois 60439, United States
| | - Ahren W Jasper
- Chemical Sciences and Engineering Division, Argonne National Laboratory, Lemont, Illinois 60439, United States
| | - Kirill Prozument
- Chemical Sciences and Engineering Division, Argonne National Laboratory, Lemont, Illinois 60439, United States
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2
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Knížek A, Petera L, Laitl V, Ferus M. Decomposition of HCN during Experimental Impacts in Dry and Wet Planetary Atmospheres. ACS EARTH & SPACE CHEMISTRY 2024; 8:1246-1258. [PMID: 38919854 PMCID: PMC11195306 DOI: 10.1021/acsearthspacechem.4c00064] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Figures] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 03/18/2024] [Revised: 05/09/2024] [Accepted: 05/14/2024] [Indexed: 06/27/2024]
Abstract
Hydrogen cyanide (HCN), a key molecule of significant importance in contemporary perspectives on prebiotic chemistry, originates in planetary atmospheres from various processes, such as photochemistry, thermochemistry, and impact chemistry, as well as from delivery by impacts. The resilience of HCN during periods of heavy bombardment, a phenomenon caused by an influx of material on unstable trajectories after accretion, remains relatively understudied. This study extensively investigates the stability of HCN under impact conditions simulated using a laboratory Nd:YAG laser in the ELISE experimental setup. High-resolution infrared spectroscopy was employed to monitor the gas phase composition during these simulations. Impact chemistry was simulated in bulk nitrogen atmospheres with varying mixing ratios of HCN and water vapor. The probed range of compositions spans from ∼0 to 1.8% of HCN and 0 to 2.7% of H2O in a ∼1 bar nitrogen atmosphere. The primary decomposition products of HCN are CO and CO2 in the presence of water and unidentified solid phase products in dry conditions. Our experiments revealed a range of initial HCN decomposition rates between 2.43 × 1015 and 5.17 × 1017 molec J-1 of input energy depending on the initial composition. Notably, it is shown that the decomposition process induced by the laser spark simulating the impact plasma is nonlinear, with the duration of the irradiation markedly affecting the decomposition rate. These findings underscore the necessity for careful consideration and allowance for margins when applying these rates to chemical models of molecular synthesis and decomposition in planetary atmospheres.
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Affiliation(s)
- Antonín Knížek
- J.Heyrovský
Institute of Physical Chemistry, Czech Academy
of Sciences, Dolejškova
2155/3, CZ18223 Prague, Czech Republic
| | - Lukáš Petera
- J.Heyrovský
Institute of Physical Chemistry, Czech Academy
of Sciences, Dolejškova
2155/3, CZ18223 Prague, Czech Republic
- Department
of Inorganic Chemistry, Faculty of Science, Charles University, Hlavova 8, CZ12800 Prague, Czech Republic
| | - Vojtěch Laitl
- J.Heyrovský
Institute of Physical Chemistry, Czech Academy
of Sciences, Dolejškova
2155/3, CZ18223 Prague, Czech Republic
- Faculty
of Science, University of Antwerp, Groenenborgerlaan 171, BE2020 Antwerpen, Belgium
| | - Martin Ferus
- J.Heyrovský
Institute of Physical Chemistry, Czech Academy
of Sciences, Dolejškova
2155/3, CZ18223 Prague, Czech Republic
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3
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Gerlach M, Schaffner D, Preitschopf T, Karaev E, Bozek J, Holzmeier F, Fischer I. X-ray induced fragmentation of fulminic acid, HCNO. J Chem Phys 2023; 159:114306. [PMID: 37721327 DOI: 10.1063/5.0167395] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 07/12/2023] [Accepted: 08/24/2023] [Indexed: 09/19/2023] Open
Abstract
The fragmentation of fulminic acid, HCNO, after excitation and ionization of core electrons was investigated using Auger-electron-photoion coincidence spectroscopy. A considerable degree of site-selectivity is observed. Ionization of the carbon and oxygen 1s electron leads to around 70% CH+ + NO+, while ionization at the central N-atom produces only 37% CH+ + NO+, but preferentially forms O+ + HCN+ and O+ + CN+. The mass-selected Auger-electron spectra show that these fragments are associated with higher binding energy final states. Furthermore, ionization of the C 1s electron leads to a higher propensity for C-H bond fission compared to O 1s ionization. Following resonant Auger-Meitner decay after 1s → 3π excitation, 12 different ionic products are formed. At the C 1s edge, the parent ion HCNO+ is significantly more stable compared to the other two edges, which we also attribute to the higher contribution of final states with low binding energies in the C 1s resonant Auger electron spectra.
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Affiliation(s)
- Marius Gerlach
- Institute of Physical and Theoretical Chemistry, University of Würzburg, 97074 Würzburg, Germany
| | - Dorothee Schaffner
- Institute of Physical and Theoretical Chemistry, University of Würzburg, 97074 Würzburg, Germany
| | - Tobias Preitschopf
- Institute of Physical and Theoretical Chemistry, University of Würzburg, 97074 Würzburg, Germany
| | - Emil Karaev
- Institute of Physical and Theoretical Chemistry, University of Würzburg, 97074 Würzburg, Germany
| | - John Bozek
- Synchrotron SOLEIL, 91192 Gif-sur-Yvette, France
| | | | - Ingo Fischer
- Institute of Physical and Theoretical Chemistry, University of Würzburg, 97074 Würzburg, Germany
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4
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Civiš S, Pastorek A, Ferus M, Yurchenko SN, Boudjema NI. Infrared Spectra of Small Radicals for Exoplanetary Spectroscopy: OH, NH, CN and CH: The State of Current Knowledge. Molecules 2023; 28:molecules28083362. [PMID: 37110598 PMCID: PMC10143568 DOI: 10.3390/molecules28083362] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 03/09/2023] [Revised: 03/29/2023] [Accepted: 03/30/2023] [Indexed: 04/29/2023] Open
Abstract
In this study, we present a current state-of-the-art review of middle-to-near IR emission spectra of four simple astrophysically relevant molecular radicals-OH, NH, CN and CH. The spectra of these radicals were measured by means of time-resolved Fourier transform infrared spectroscopy in the 700-7500 cm-1 spectral range and with 0.07-0.02 cm-1 spectral resolution. The radicals were generated in a glow discharge of gaseous mixtures in a specially designed discharge cell. The spectra of short-lived radicals published here are of great importance, especially for the detailed knowledge and study of the composition of exoplanetary atmospheres in selected new planets. Today, with the help of the James Webb telescope and upcoming studies with the help of Plato and Ariel satellites, when the investigated spectral area is extended into the infrared spectral range, it means that detailed knowledge of the infrared spectra of not only stable molecules but also the spectra of short-lived radicals or ions, is indispensable. This paper follows a simple structure. Each radical is described in a separate chapter, starting with historical and actual theoretical background, continued by our experimental results and concluded by spectral line lists with assigned notation.
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Affiliation(s)
- Svatopluk Civiš
- J. Heyrovsky Institute of Physical Chemistry, Czech Academy of Sciences, Dolejškova 2155/3, 18200 Prague 8, Czech Republic
| | - Adam Pastorek
- Department of Chemistry and Biochemistry, Old Dominion University, Norfolk, VA 23529, USA
| | - Martin Ferus
- J. Heyrovsky Institute of Physical Chemistry, Czech Academy of Sciences, Dolejškova 2155/3, 18200 Prague 8, Czech Republic
| | - Sergei N Yurchenko
- Department of Physics and Astronomy, University College London, Gower Street, London WC1E 6BT, UK
| | - Noor-Ines Boudjema
- Department of Physics and Astronomy, University College London, Gower Street, London WC1E 6BT, UK
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5
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Paranjothy M. Theoretical Investigation of Dissociation versus Intramolecular Rearrangements in Aminohydroxymethylene. J Phys Chem A 2022; 126:6927-6933. [PMID: 36130264 DOI: 10.1021/acs.jpca.2c04950] [Citation(s) in RCA: 1] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.5] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 11/29/2022]
Abstract
Aminohydroxymethylene (H2N-C̈-OH) is the simplest aminooxycarbene which is a heteroatom stabilized carbene. This highly reactive molecule was prepared in an Ar matrix in a recent experimental work. Unimolecular reactivity of this astrochemically important molecule was investigated and only fragmentations were identified contrary to the observations of both fragmentations and intramolecular rearrangements in other hydroxycarbenes. These rearrangement reactions form the corresponding imine and carbonyl compounds. In the present work, direct chemical dynamics simulations of unimolecular chemistry of aminohydroxymethylene were performed in the gas phase to study atomic level dissociation mechanisms. Classical trajectories were generated on-the-fly using potentials and gradients computed at the density functional B3LYP/6-31+G* level of electronic structure theory. Simulation results showed that intramolecular rearrangements accompany fragmentations during the unimolecular decay process of aminohydroxymethylene. However, the average lifetime of the intermediate isomers were found to be only few picoseconds which might not have been long enough for detection in the experiments.
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Affiliation(s)
- Manikandan Paranjothy
- Department of Chemistry, Indian Institute of Technology Jodhpur, Jodhpur, Rajasthan 342037, India
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6
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Morphology of Meteorite Surfaces Ablated by High-Power Lasers: Review and Applications. APPLIED SCIENCES-BASEL 2022. [DOI: 10.3390/app12104869] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 02/04/2023]
Abstract
Under controlled laboratory conditions, lasers represent a source of energy with well-defined parameters suitable for mimicking phenomena such as ablation, disintegration, and plasma formation processes that take place during the hypervelocity atmospheric entry of meteoroids. Furthermore, lasers have also been proposed for employment in future space exploration and planetary defense in a wide range of potential applications. This highlights the importance of an experimental investigation of lasers’ interaction with real samples of interplanetary matter: meteorite specimens. We summarize the results of numerous meteorite laser ablation experiments performed by several laser sources—a femtosecond Ti:Sapphire laser, the multislab ceramic Yb:YAG Bivoj laser, and the iodine laser known as PALS (Prague Asterix Laser System). The differences in the ablation spots’ morphology and their dependence on the laser parameters are examined via optical microscopy, scanning electron microscopy, and profilometry in the context of the meteorite properties and the physical characteristics of laser-induced plasma.
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7
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Oba Y, Takano Y, Furukawa Y, Koga T, Glavin DP, Dworkin JP, Naraoka H. Identifying the wide diversity of extraterrestrial purine and pyrimidine nucleobases in carbonaceous meteorites. Nat Commun 2022; 13:2008. [PMID: 35473908 PMCID: PMC9042847 DOI: 10.1038/s41467-022-29612-x] [Citation(s) in RCA: 25] [Impact Index Per Article: 12.5] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 10/20/2021] [Accepted: 03/22/2022] [Indexed: 11/09/2022] Open
Abstract
The lack of pyrimidine diversity in meteorites remains a mystery since prebiotic chemical models and laboratory experiments have predicted that these compounds can also be produced from chemical precursors found in meteorites. Here we report the detection of nucleobases in three carbonaceous meteorites using state-of-the-art analytical techniques optimized for small-scale quantification of nucleobases down to the range of parts per trillion (ppt). In addition to previously detected purine nucleobases in meteorites such as guanine and adenine, we identify various pyrimidine nucleobases such as cytosine, uracil, and thymine, and their structural isomers such as isocytosine, imidazole-4-carboxylic acid, and 6-methyluracil, respectively. Given the similarity in the molecular distribution of pyrimidines in meteorites and those in photon-processed interstellar ice analogues, some of these derivatives could have been generated by photochemical reactions prevailing in the interstellar medium and later incorporated into asteroids during solar system formation. This study demonstrates that a diversity of meteoritic nucleobases could serve as building blocks of DNA and RNA on the early Earth.
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Affiliation(s)
- Yasuhiro Oba
- Institute of Low Temperature Science (ILTS), Hokkaido University, N19W8, Kita-ku, Sapporo, Hokkaido, 060-0189, Japan.
| | - Yoshinori Takano
- Biogeochemistry Research Center (BGC), Japan Agency for Marine-Earth Science and Technology (JAMSTEC), 2-15 Natsushima, Yokosuka, Kanagawa, 237-0061, Japan
| | - Yoshihiro Furukawa
- Department of Earth Science, Tohoku University, 6-3 Aza-aoba, Aramaki, Aoba-ku, Sendai, 980-8578, Japan
| | - Toshiki Koga
- Biogeochemistry Research Center (BGC), Japan Agency for Marine-Earth Science and Technology (JAMSTEC), 2-15 Natsushima, Yokosuka, Kanagawa, 237-0061, Japan
| | - Daniel P Glavin
- Solar System Exploration Division, National Aeronautics and Space Administration (NASA), Goddard Space Flight Center (GSFC), Greenbelt, MD, 20771, USA
| | - Jason P Dworkin
- Solar System Exploration Division, National Aeronautics and Space Administration (NASA), Goddard Space Flight Center (GSFC), Greenbelt, MD, 20771, USA
| | - Hiroshi Naraoka
- Department of Earth and Planetary Sciences, Kyushu University, 744 Motooka, Nishi-ku, Fukuoka, Fukuoka, 819-0395, Japan
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8
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Sitha S. Tetrel bonding in the realm of transition states favors silicon over Carbon: Role of water as a tetrel spectator in the formation of silaformamide. COMPUT THEOR CHEM 2021. [DOI: 10.1016/j.comptc.2021.113456] [Citation(s) in RCA: 1] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.3] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 11/30/2022]
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9
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Enchev V, Slavova S. Self-catalytic mechanism of prebiotic reactions: from formamide to pterins and guanine. Phys Chem Chem Phys 2021; 23:19043-19053. [PMID: 34612442 DOI: 10.1039/d1cp02158c] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 11/21/2022]
Abstract
Reaction pathway of prebiotic reactions for formation of the pteridines: pterin, xanthopterine, isoxanthopterine and leucopterine, as well as the purine nucleobase guanine from pure formamide are presented. In these reactions, formamide or its tautomer, formimidic acid, play the role of proton-carrying catalyst. All required raw materials, such as hydrogen cyanide, ammonia, water, formic acid, urea, 2-aminomalononitrile, glyoxal, glyoxylic acid and oxalic acid needed in the self-catalyzed reactions are obtained by partial decomposition of formamide. We show that the prebiotic formation of nucleobases and pterins is closely linked and they probably coexisted at the beginning of chemical evolution.
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Affiliation(s)
- Venelin Enchev
- Institute of General and Inorganic Chemistry, Bulgarian Academy of Sciences, 1113 Sofia, Bulgaria
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10
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Micellar electrokinetic chromatography as a powerful analytical tool for research on prebiotic chemistry. Microchem J 2021. [DOI: 10.1016/j.microc.2021.106022] [Citation(s) in RCA: 3] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 11/21/2022]
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11
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A computational study on the formations of formamide analogues: Interesting chemistry by silicon analogues. COMPUT THEOR CHEM 2021. [DOI: 10.1016/j.comptc.2021.113290] [Citation(s) in RCA: 1] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.3] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 11/20/2022]
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12
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Clark VHJ, Yurchenko SN. Modelling the non-local thermodynamic equilibrium spectra of silylene (SiH 2). Phys Chem Chem Phys 2021; 23:11990-12004. [PMID: 34002738 PMCID: PMC8153040 DOI: 10.1039/d1cp00839k] [Citation(s) in RCA: 4] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.3] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 02/23/2021] [Accepted: 04/28/2021] [Indexed: 11/24/2022]
Abstract
This paper sets out a robust methodology for modelling spectra of polyatomic molecules produced in reactive or dissociative environments, with vibrational populations outside local thermal equilibrium (LTE). The methodology is based on accurate, extensive ro-vibrational line lists containing transitions with high vibrational excitations and relies on the detailed ro-vibrational assignments. The developed methodology is applied to model non-LTE IR and visible spectra of silylene (SiH2) produced in a decomposition of disilane (Si2H6), a reaction of technological importance. Two approaches for non-LTE vibrational populations of the product SiH2 are introduced: a simplistic 1D approach based on the Harmonic approximation and a full 3D model incorporating accurate vibrational wavefunctions of SiH2 computed variationally with the TROVE (Theoretical ROVibrational Energy) program. We show how their non-LTE spectral signatures can be used to trace different reaction channels of molecular dissociations.
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Affiliation(s)
- Victoria H J Clark
- Department of Physics and Astronomy, University College London, Gower Street, WC1E 6BT London, UK.
| | - Sergei N Yurchenko
- Department of Physics and Astronomy, University College London, Gower Street, WC1E 6BT London, UK.
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13
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Hydrogenations of Isocyanic Acid: A Computational Study on Four Possible Concerted Paths for Formamide Formation. Theor Chem Acc 2021. [DOI: 10.1007/s00214-021-02750-z] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 10/21/2022]
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14
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Petera L, Mrazikova K, Nejdl L, Zemankova K, Vaculovicova M, Pastorek A, Civis S, Kubelik P, Heays A, Cassone G, Sponer J, Ferus M, Sponer J. Prebiotic Route to Thymine from Formamide-A Combined Experimental-Theoretical Study. Molecules 2021; 26:molecules26082248. [PMID: 33924594 PMCID: PMC8069957 DOI: 10.3390/molecules26082248] [Citation(s) in RCA: 1] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.3] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 03/01/2021] [Revised: 03/29/2021] [Accepted: 04/06/2021] [Indexed: 12/02/2022] Open
Abstract
Synthesis of RNA nucleobases from formamide is one of the recurring topics of prebiotic chemistry research. Earlier reports suggest that thymine, the substitute for uracil in DNA, may also be synthesized from formamide in the presence of catalysts enabling conversion of formamide to formaldehyde. In the current paper, we show that to a lesser extent conversion of uracil to thymine may occur even in the absence of catalysts. This is enabled by the presence of formic acid in the reaction mixture that forms as the hydrolysis product of formamide. Under the reaction conditions of our study, the disproportionation of formic acid may produce formaldehyde that hydroxymethylates uracil in the first step of the conversion process. The experiments are supplemented by quantum chemical modeling of the reaction pathway, supporting the plausibility of the mechanism suggested by Saladino and coworkers.
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Affiliation(s)
- Lukáš Petera
- J. Heyrovský Institute of Physical Chemistry, Czech Academy of Sciences, Dolejškova 3, CZ 18223 Prague 8, Czech Republic; (L.P.); (A.P.); (S.C.); (P.K.); (A.H.)
| | - Klaudia Mrazikova
- Institute of Biophysics of the Czech Academy of Sciences, Královopolská 135, CZ 61265 Brno, Czech Republic; (K.M.); (J.S.)
| | - Lukas Nejdl
- Department of Chemistry and Biochemistry, Mendel University in Brno, Zemědělská 1, CZ 61300 Brno, Czech Republic; (K.Z.); (M.V.)
- Central European Institute of Technology, Brno University of Technology, Purkynova 123, CZ 61200 Brno, Czech Republic
- Correspondence: (L.N.); (M.F.); (J.S.)
| | - Kristyna Zemankova
- Department of Chemistry and Biochemistry, Mendel University in Brno, Zemědělská 1, CZ 61300 Brno, Czech Republic; (K.Z.); (M.V.)
| | - Marketa Vaculovicova
- Department of Chemistry and Biochemistry, Mendel University in Brno, Zemědělská 1, CZ 61300 Brno, Czech Republic; (K.Z.); (M.V.)
- Central European Institute of Technology, Brno University of Technology, Purkynova 123, CZ 61200 Brno, Czech Republic
| | - Adam Pastorek
- J. Heyrovský Institute of Physical Chemistry, Czech Academy of Sciences, Dolejškova 3, CZ 18223 Prague 8, Czech Republic; (L.P.); (A.P.); (S.C.); (P.K.); (A.H.)
| | - Svatopluk Civis
- J. Heyrovský Institute of Physical Chemistry, Czech Academy of Sciences, Dolejškova 3, CZ 18223 Prague 8, Czech Republic; (L.P.); (A.P.); (S.C.); (P.K.); (A.H.)
| | - Petr Kubelik
- J. Heyrovský Institute of Physical Chemistry, Czech Academy of Sciences, Dolejškova 3, CZ 18223 Prague 8, Czech Republic; (L.P.); (A.P.); (S.C.); (P.K.); (A.H.)
| | - Alan Heays
- J. Heyrovský Institute of Physical Chemistry, Czech Academy of Sciences, Dolejškova 3, CZ 18223 Prague 8, Czech Republic; (L.P.); (A.P.); (S.C.); (P.K.); (A.H.)
| | - Giuseppe Cassone
- Institute for Chemical-Physical Processes, Italian National Research Council (IPCF-CNR), Viale Ferdinando Stagno d’Alcontres 37, 98158 Messina, Italy;
| | - Jiri Sponer
- Institute of Biophysics of the Czech Academy of Sciences, Královopolská 135, CZ 61265 Brno, Czech Republic; (K.M.); (J.S.)
| | - Martin Ferus
- J. Heyrovský Institute of Physical Chemistry, Czech Academy of Sciences, Dolejškova 3, CZ 18223 Prague 8, Czech Republic; (L.P.); (A.P.); (S.C.); (P.K.); (A.H.)
- Correspondence: (L.N.); (M.F.); (J.S.)
| | - Judit Sponer
- Institute of Biophysics of the Czech Academy of Sciences, Královopolská 135, CZ 61265 Brno, Czech Republic; (K.M.); (J.S.)
- Correspondence: (L.N.); (M.F.); (J.S.)
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15
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Bizzarri BM, Saladino R, Delfino I, García-Ruiz JM, Di Mauro E. Prebiotic Organic Chemistry of Formamide and the Origin of Life in Planetary Conditions: What We Know and What Is the Future. Int J Mol Sci 2021; 22:ijms22020917. [PMID: 33477625 PMCID: PMC7831497 DOI: 10.3390/ijms22020917] [Citation(s) in RCA: 11] [Impact Index Per Article: 3.7] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 12/11/2020] [Revised: 01/14/2021] [Accepted: 01/17/2021] [Indexed: 11/18/2022] Open
Abstract
The goal of prebiotic chemistry is the depiction of molecular evolution events preceding the emergence of life on Earth or elsewhere in the cosmos. Plausible experimental models require geochemical scenarios and robust chemistry. Today we know that the chemical and physical conditions for life to flourish on Earth were at work much earlier than thought, i.e., earlier than 4.4 billion years ago. In recent years, a geochemical model for the first five hundred million years of the history of our planet has been devised that would work as a cradle for life. Serpentinization processes in the Hadean eon affording self-assembled structures and vesicles provides the link between the catalytic properties of the inorganic environment and the impressive chemical potential of formamide to produce complete panels of organic molecules relevant in pre-genetic and pre-metabolic processes. Based on an interdisciplinary approach, we propose basic transformations connecting geochemistry to the chemistry of formamide, and we hint at the possible extension of this perspective to other worlds.
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Affiliation(s)
- Bruno Mattia Bizzarri
- Ecological and Biological Sciences Department (DEB), University of Tuscia, Via S. Camillo de Lellis snc, 01100 Viterbo, Italy; (B.M.B.); (I.D.); (E.D.M.)
| | - Raffaele Saladino
- Ecological and Biological Sciences Department (DEB), University of Tuscia, Via S. Camillo de Lellis snc, 01100 Viterbo, Italy; (B.M.B.); (I.D.); (E.D.M.)
- Correspondence: (R.S.); (J.M.G.-R.)
| | - Ines Delfino
- Ecological and Biological Sciences Department (DEB), University of Tuscia, Via S. Camillo de Lellis snc, 01100 Viterbo, Italy; (B.M.B.); (I.D.); (E.D.M.)
| | - Juan Manuel García-Ruiz
- Laboratorio de Estudios Cristalográficos, Instituto Andaluz de Ciencias de la Tierra, Consejo Superior de Investigaciones Científicas–Universidad de Granada, Avenida de las Palmeras 4, Armilla, 18100 Granada, Spain
- Correspondence: (R.S.); (J.M.G.-R.)
| | - Ernesto Di Mauro
- Ecological and Biological Sciences Department (DEB), University of Tuscia, Via S. Camillo de Lellis snc, 01100 Viterbo, Italy; (B.M.B.); (I.D.); (E.D.M.)
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16
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Ferus M, Rimmer P, Cassone G, Knížek A, Civiš S, Šponer JE, Ivanek O, Šponer J, Saeidfirozeh H, Kubelík P, Dudžák R, Petera L, Juha L, Pastorek A, Křivková A, Krůs M. One-Pot Hydrogen Cyanide-Based Prebiotic Synthesis of Canonical Nucleobases and Glycine Initiated by High-Velocity Impacts on Early Earth. ASTROBIOLOGY 2020; 20:1476-1488. [PMID: 32955922 DOI: 10.1089/ast.2020.2231] [Citation(s) in RCA: 10] [Impact Index Per Article: 2.5] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 06/11/2023]
Abstract
Chemical environments of young planets are assumed to be significantly influenced by impacts of bodies lingering after the dissolution of the protoplanetary disk. We explore the chemical consequences of impacts of these bodies under reducing planetary atmospheres dominated by carbon monoxide, methane, and molecular nitrogen. Impacts were simulated by using a terawatt high-power laser system. Our experimental results show that one-pot impact-plasma-initiated synthesis of all the RNA canonical nucleobases and the simplest amino acid glycine is possible in this type of atmosphere in the presence of montmorillonite. This one-pot synthesis begins with de novo formation of hydrogen cyanide (HCN) and proceeds through intermediates such as cyanoacetylene and urea.
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Affiliation(s)
- Martin Ferus
- J. Heyrovský Institute of Physical Chemistry of the Czech Academy of Sciences, Prague, Czech Republic
| | - Paul Rimmer
- Department of Earth Sciences, University of Cambridge, Cambridge, United Kingdom
- Cavendish Astrophysics, University of Cambridge, Cambridge, United Kingdom
- MRC Laboratory of Molecular Biology, Cambridge, United Kingdom
| | - Giuseppe Cassone
- Institute for Physical-Chemical Processes, National Research Council, Messina, Italy
| | - Antonín Knížek
- J. Heyrovský Institute of Physical Chemistry of the Czech Academy of Sciences, Prague, Czech Republic
- Faculty of Science, Charles University in Prague, Prague, Czech Republic
| | - Svatopluk Civiš
- J. Heyrovský Institute of Physical Chemistry of the Czech Academy of Sciences, Prague, Czech Republic
| | - Judit E Šponer
- Institute of Biophysics of the Czech Academy of Sciences, Brno, Czech Republic
| | - Ondřej Ivanek
- J. Heyrovský Institute of Physical Chemistry of the Czech Academy of Sciences, Prague, Czech Republic
| | - Jiří Šponer
- Institute of Biophysics of the Czech Academy of Sciences, Brno, Czech Republic
| | - Homa Saeidfirozeh
- J. Heyrovský Institute of Physical Chemistry of the Czech Academy of Sciences, Prague, Czech Republic
| | - Petr Kubelík
- J. Heyrovský Institute of Physical Chemistry of the Czech Academy of Sciences, Prague, Czech Republic
- Department of Radiation and Chemical Physics, Institute of Physics, Czech Academy of Sciences, Prague, Czech Republic
| | - Roman Dudžák
- Department of Radiation and Chemical Physics, Institute of Physics, Czech Academy of Sciences, Prague, Czech Republic
- Institute of Plasma Physics, Czech Academy of Sciences, Prague, Czech Republic
| | - Lukáš Petera
- J. Heyrovský Institute of Physical Chemistry of the Czech Academy of Sciences, Prague, Czech Republic
- Faculty of Science, Charles University in Prague, Prague, Czech Republic
| | - Libor Juha
- Department of Radiation and Chemical Physics, Institute of Physics, Czech Academy of Sciences, Prague, Czech Republic
- Institute of Plasma Physics, Czech Academy of Sciences, Prague, Czech Republic
| | - Adam Pastorek
- J. Heyrovský Institute of Physical Chemistry of the Czech Academy of Sciences, Prague, Czech Republic
- Faculty of Nuclear Sciences and Physical Engineering, Czech Technical University in Prague, Prague, Czech Republic
| | - Anna Křivková
- J. Heyrovský Institute of Physical Chemistry of the Czech Academy of Sciences, Prague, Czech Republic
- Faculty of Nuclear Sciences and Physical Engineering, Czech Technical University in Prague, Prague, Czech Republic
| | - Miroslav Krůs
- Institute of Plasma Physics, Czech Academy of Sciences, Prague, Czech Republic
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17
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Pastorek A, Ferus M, Čuba V, Šrámek O, Ivanek O, Civiš S. Primordial Radioactivity and Prebiotic Chemical Evolution: Effect of γ Radiation on Formamide-Based Synthesis. J Phys Chem B 2020; 124:8951-8959. [PMID: 32970439 DOI: 10.1021/acs.jpcb.0c05233] [Citation(s) in RCA: 4] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 11/29/2022]
Abstract
Although the effect of ionizing radiation on prebiotic chemistry is often overlooked, primordial natural radioactivity might have been an important source of energy for various chemical transformations. Estimates of the abundances of short-lived radionuclides on early Earth suggest that the primordial intensity of endogenous terrestrial radioactivity was up to 4 × 103 times higher than it is today. Therefore, we assume that chemical substances in contact with radioactive rocks should therefore undergo radiolysis. The calculations are followed by research investigating the influence of ionizing γ radiation on basic prebiotic substances, including formamide mixed with various clays, which might have played the role of a catalyst and an agent that partially blocked radiation that was potentially destructive for the products. Our explorations of this effect have shown that the irradiation of formamide-clay mixtures at doses of ∼6 kGy produces significant amounts of urea (up to the maximal concentration of approximately 250 mg L-1), which plays a role in HCN-based prebiotic chemistry.
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Affiliation(s)
- Adam Pastorek
- J. Heyrovsky Institute of Physical Chemistry, Czech Academy of Sciences, Dolejškova 2155/3, 18200 Prague, Prague 8, Czech Republic.,Faculty of Nuclear Sciences and Physical Engineering, Czech Technical University in Prague, Břehová 78/7, 11519 Prague, Prague 1, Czech Republic
| | - Martin Ferus
- J. Heyrovsky Institute of Physical Chemistry, Czech Academy of Sciences, Dolejškova 2155/3, 18200 Prague, Prague 8, Czech Republic
| | - Václav Čuba
- Faculty of Nuclear Sciences and Physical Engineering, Czech Technical University in Prague, Břehová 78/7, 11519 Prague, Prague 1, Czech Republic
| | - Ondřej Šrámek
- Department of Geophysics, Faculty of Mathematics and Physics, Charles University, V Holešovičkách 2, 18000 Prague, Prague 8, Czech Republic
| | - Ondřej Ivanek
- J. Heyrovsky Institute of Physical Chemistry, Czech Academy of Sciences, Dolejškova 2155/3, 18200 Prague, Prague 8, Czech Republic
| | - Svatopluk Civiš
- J. Heyrovsky Institute of Physical Chemistry, Czech Academy of Sciences, Dolejškova 2155/3, 18200 Prague, Prague 8, Czech Republic
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18
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Enchev V, Angelov I, Dincheva I, Stoyanova N, Slavova S, Rangelov M, Markova N. Chemical evolution: from formamide to nucleobases and amino acids without the presence of catalyst. J Biomol Struct Dyn 2020; 39:5563-5578. [PMID: 32677584 DOI: 10.1080/07391102.2020.1792986] [Citation(s) in RCA: 7] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.8] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 10/23/2022]
Abstract
Abiotic synthesis of nucleobases and amino acids is of critical importance as it sheds light on potential prebiotic chemical reactions. During thermal decomposition of formamide in vacuum conditions, purine, cytosine, adenine, hypoxanthine, uracil, pterin, urea, urocanic acid, glycine, alanine and norvaline were detected. The compounds were obtained without catalyst by heating at 100-180 °C or microwave heating of formamide. Reaction network of self-catalyzed chemical reactions is suggested, showing how from only one parent molecule, nucleobases, urea and the amino acid glycine can be produced. The reaction pathways are theoretically determined using SCS-MP2 calculations.Communicated by Ramaswamy H. Sarma.
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Affiliation(s)
- Venelin Enchev
- Bulgarian Academy of Sciences, Institute of General and Inorganic Chemistry, Sofia, Bulgaria
| | - Ivan Angelov
- Bulgarian Academy of Sciences, Institute of Organic Chemistry with Centre of Phytochemistry, Sofia, Bulgaria
| | | | - Nina Stoyanova
- Bulgarian Academy of Sciences, Institute of General and Inorganic Chemistry, Sofia, Bulgaria
| | - Sofia Slavova
- Bulgarian Academy of Sciences, Institute of General and Inorganic Chemistry, Sofia, Bulgaria
| | - Miroslav Rangelov
- Bulgarian Academy of Sciences, Institute of Organic Chemistry with Centre of Phytochemistry, Sofia, Bulgaria
| | - Nadezhda Markova
- Bulgarian Academy of Sciences, Institute of Organic Chemistry with Centre of Phytochemistry, Sofia, Bulgaria
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19
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Ashraful AM, da Silva G. A detailed chemical kinetic model for the supercritical water oxidation of methylamine: The importance of imine formation. INT J CHEM KINET 2020. [DOI: 10.1002/kin.21393] [Citation(s) in RCA: 2] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.5] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 11/11/2022]
Affiliation(s)
- A. M. Ashraful
- Department of Chemical EngineeringThe University of Melbourne Parkville 3010 Australia
| | - Gabriel da Silva
- Department of Chemical EngineeringThe University of Melbourne Parkville 3010 Australia
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20
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Recent Results on Computational Molecular Modeling of The Origins of Life. FOUNDATIONS OF COMPUTING AND DECISION SCIENCES 2020. [DOI: 10.2478/fcds-2020-0003] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 11/20/2022] Open
Abstract
Abstract
In the last decade of research in the origins of life, there has been an increase in the interest on theoretical molecular modeling methods aimed to improve the accuracy and speed of the algorithms that solve the molecular mechanics and chemical reactions of the matter. Research on the scenarios of prebiotic chemistry has also advanced. The presented work attempts to discuss the latest computational techniques and trends implemented so far. Although it is difficult to cover the full extent of the current publications, we tried to orient the reader into the modern tendencies and challenges faced by those who are in the origins of life field.
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21
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Suwannakham P, Sagarik K. Unimolecular photolysis mechanisms of formamide: the effect of thermal energy. Phys Chem Chem Phys 2020; 22:25789-25802. [DOI: 10.1039/d0cp03718d] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 10/23/2022]
Abstract
The C–N dissociation is the most favorable in S1 state, and radical products (1) are precursors in other channels.
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Affiliation(s)
- Parichart Suwannakham
- School of Chemistry
- Institute of Science, Suranaree University of Technology
- Nakhon Ratchasima 30000
- Thailand
| | - Kritsana Sagarik
- School of Chemistry
- Institute of Science, Suranaree University of Technology
- Nakhon Ratchasima 30000
- Thailand
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22
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Darla N, Sharma D, Sitha S. Formation of Formamide from HCN + H 2O: A Computational Study on the Roles of a Second H 2O as a Catalyst, as a Spectator, and as a Reactant. J Phys Chem A 2019; 124:165-175. [PMID: 31820987 DOI: 10.1021/acs.jpca.9b09924] [Citation(s) in RCA: 10] [Impact Index Per Article: 2.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 11/28/2022]
Abstract
Formamide (NH2CHO), being the smallest and fundamental building block of life (with a peptide linkage), has recently been able to attract much interests, in the field of astrochemistry, astrophysics, and astrobiology. In this work, using quantum mechanical computations, reactions between HCN and H2O, leading to the formation of formamide, have been analyzed. For the first time, an alternative and competing reaction channel, which proceeds via a geminal diol intermediate, for the formation of formamide, has been proposed. In this alternative channel, an extra water molecule (second H2O) was found to be acting as a reactant, in the second step of the reaction path. Effects of second H2O molecule in the reaction paths, providing catalytic assistance to the reaction or behaving like a spectator (concept is introduced for the first time for this reaction), have also been analyzed. Usefulness of spectator behavior is highlighted for the reactions happening on the rigid water-ice surfaces, where the water-ice may not be getting involved for any catalytic assistance. In light of catalytic assistances provided by the second H2O, prominent effects in reducing the barrier heights drastically (even for the second step of the reaction, the barrier height was found to be below the reactants), through a hydrogen relay transport mechanism, were observed. In addition to the mechanism studies, interstellar feasibilities of all the reaction channels and their significances are discussed in detail.
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Affiliation(s)
- Nagasuneetha Darla
- Department of Chemical Sciences , University of Johannesburg , P.O. Box 524, Auckland Park, Johannesburg , South Africa 2006
| | - Divya Sharma
- Department of Chemical Sciences , University of Johannesburg , P.O. Box 524, Auckland Park, Johannesburg , South Africa 2006
| | - Sanyasi Sitha
- Department of Chemical Sciences , University of Johannesburg , P.O. Box 524, Auckland Park, Johannesburg , South Africa 2006
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23
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Darla N, Sitha S. Reaction between NH3 (X̌1A1) and CO (X1Σ+): A Computational Insight into the Reaction Mechanism of Formamide (H2N–CHO) Formation. J Phys Chem A 2019; 123:8921-8931. [DOI: 10.1021/acs.jpca.9b07255] [Citation(s) in RCA: 8] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.6] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 11/28/2022]
Affiliation(s)
- Nagasuneetha Darla
- Department of Chemical Sciences, APK Campus, University of Johannesburg, P.O. Box 524, Auckland Park, Johannesburg 2006, South Africa
| | - Sanyasi Sitha
- Department of Chemical Sciences, APK Campus, University of Johannesburg, P.O. Box 524, Auckland Park, Johannesburg 2006, South Africa
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24
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Pastorek A, Hrnčířová J, Jankovič L, Nejdl L, Civiš S, Ivanek O, Shestivska V, KníŽek A, Kubelík P, Šponer J, Petera L, Křivková A, Cassone G, Vaculovičová M, Šponer JE, Ferus M. Prebiotic synthesis at impact craters: the role of Fe-clays and iron meteorites. Chem Commun (Camb) 2019; 55:10563-10566. [PMID: 31417990 DOI: 10.1039/c9cc04627e] [Citation(s) in RCA: 12] [Impact Index Per Article: 2.4] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 11/21/2022]
Abstract
Besides delivering plausible prebiotic feedstock molecules and high-energy initiators, extraterrestrial impacts could also affect the process of abiogenesis by altering the early Earth's geological environment in which primitive life was conceived. We show that iron-rich smectites formed by reprocessing of basalts due to the residual post-impact heat could catalyze the synthesis and accumulation of important prebiotic building blocks such as nucleobases, amino acids and urea.
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Affiliation(s)
- Adam Pastorek
- J. Heyrovský Institute of Physical Chemistry, Czech Academy of Sciences, Dolejškova 3, 182 23 Prague 8, Czech Republic.
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25
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Šponer JE, Šponer J, Di Mauro E. Structural and Energetic Compatibility: The Driving Principles of Molecular Evolution. ASTROBIOLOGY 2019; 19:1117-1122. [PMID: 31045430 DOI: 10.1089/ast.2018.1978] [Citation(s) in RCA: 3] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.6] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 06/09/2023]
Abstract
In this work, we provide an answer to the question formulated by Albert Eschenmoser: "How would you envisage the bridge between potentially primordial geochemistry that had been disordered and one that gradually became self-organizing?" Analysis of the free-energy profiles of some of the key reactions leading to formation of nucleotides and their oligomers shows that, whereas the first part of the pathway, up to nucleotides, is energy-driven, in the second low-energy part entropic control in the form of structural compatibility becomes more important. We suggest that the birth of modern metabolism requires structural compatibility, which is enabled by the commensurability of the thermodynamics of the synthetic steps with the stabilizing effect of those intermolecular interactions that play a key role in dictating entropic control of these reactions.
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Affiliation(s)
- Judit E Šponer
- Institute of Biophysics of the Czech Academy of Sciences, Brno, Czech Republic
- Regional Centre of Advanced Technologies and Materials, Department of Physical Chemistry, Faculty of Science, Palacky University, Olomouc, Czech Republic
| | - Jiří Šponer
- Institute of Biophysics of the Czech Academy of Sciences, Brno, Czech Republic
- Regional Centre of Advanced Technologies and Materials, Department of Physical Chemistry, Faculty of Science, Palacky University, Olomouc, Czech Republic
| | - Ernesto Di Mauro
- Institute for Molecular Biology and Pathology, CNR, c/o Università Sapienza, Roma, Italy
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26
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d'Ischia M, Manini P, Moracci M, Saladino R, Ball V, Thissen H, Evans RA, Puzzarini C, Barone V. Astrochemistry and Astrobiology: Materials Sciencein Wonderland? Int J Mol Sci 2019; 20:E4079. [PMID: 31438518 PMCID: PMC6747172 DOI: 10.3390/ijms20174079] [Citation(s) in RCA: 24] [Impact Index Per Article: 4.8] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 07/29/2019] [Revised: 08/14/2019] [Accepted: 08/19/2019] [Indexed: 02/04/2023] Open
Abstract
Astrochemistry and astrobiology, the fascinating disciplines that strive to unravel the origin of life, have opened unprecedented and unpredicted vistas into exotic compounds as well as extreme or complex reaction conditions of potential relevance for a broad variety of applications. Representative, and so far little explored sources of inspiration include complex organic systems, such as polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbons (PAHs) and their derivatives; hydrogen cyanide (HCN) and formamide (HCONH2) oligomers and polymers, like aminomalononitrile (AMN)-derived species; and exotic processes, such as solid-state photoreactions on mineral surfaces, phosphorylation by minerals, cold ice irradiation and proton bombardment, and thermal transformations in fumaroles. In addition, meteorites and minerals like forsterite, which dominate dust chemistry in the interstellar medium, may open new avenues for the discovery of innovative catalytic processes and unconventional methodologies. The aim of this review was to offer concise and inspiring, rather than comprehensive, examples of astrochemistry-related materials and systems that may be of relevance in areas such as surface functionalization, nanostructures, and hybrid material design, and for innovative technological solutions. The potential of computational methods to predict new properties from spectroscopic data and to assess plausible reaction pathways on both kinetic and thermodynamic grounds has also been highlighted.
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Affiliation(s)
- Marco d'Ischia
- Department of Chemical Sciences, University of Naples "Federico II", Complesso Universitario di Monte S. Angelo, Via Cupa Nuova Cinthia 21, 80126 Naples, Italy.
| | - Paola Manini
- Department of Chemical Sciences, University of Naples "Federico II", Complesso Universitario di Monte S. Angelo, Via Cupa Nuova Cinthia 21, 80126 Naples, Italy
| | - Marco Moracci
- Department of Biology, University of Naples "Federico II", Complesso Universitario di Monte S. Angelo, Via Cupa Nuova Cinthia 21, 80126 Naples, Italy
- Institute of Biosciences and BioResources, National Research Council of Italy, Via P. Castellino 111, 80131 Naples, Italy
| | - Raffaele Saladino
- Department of Ecological and Biological Sciences, Via S. Camillo de Lellis, University of Tuscia, 01100 Viterbo, Italy
| | - Vincent Ball
- Institut National de la Santé et de la RechercheMédicale, 11 rue Humann, 67085 Strasbourg Cedex, France
- Faculté de Chirurgie Dentaire, Université de Strasbourg, 1 Place de l'Hôpital, 67000 Strasbourg, France
| | - Helmut Thissen
- Commonwealth Scientific and Industrial Research Organisation (CSIRO) Manufacturing, Clayton, VIC 3168, Australia
| | - Richard A Evans
- Commonwealth Scientific and Industrial Research Organisation (CSIRO) Manufacturing, Clayton, VIC 3168, Australia
| | - Cristina Puzzarini
- Department of Chemistry "Giacomo Ciamician", University of Bologna, Via F. Selmi 2, I-40126 Bologna, Italy
| | - Vincenzo Barone
- Scuola Normale Superiore, Piazza dei Cavalieri 7, I-56126 Pisa, Italy
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27
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Haupa KA, Tarczay G, Lee YP. Hydrogen Abstraction/Addition Tunneling Reactions Elucidate the Interstellar H2NCHO/HNCO Ratio and H2 Formation. J Am Chem Soc 2019; 141:11614-11620. [DOI: 10.1021/jacs.9b04491] [Citation(s) in RCA: 43] [Impact Index Per Article: 8.6] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 11/28/2022]
Affiliation(s)
| | - György Tarczay
- HAS-ELTE Laboratory Astrochemistry Lendület Research Group, Pázmány P. S. 1/a, Budapest 1117, Hungary
- Laboratory of Molecular Spectroscopy, Institute of Chemistry, ELTE Eötvös Loránd University, Pázmány P. S. 1/a, Budapest 1117, Hungary
| | - Yuan-Pern Lee
- Institute of Atomic and Molecular Sciences, Academia Sinica, Taipei 10617, Taiwan
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28
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Shtyrlin VG, Borissenok VA, Serov NY, Simakov VG, Bragunets VA, Trunin IR, Tereshkina IA, Koshkin SA, Bukharov MS, Gilyazetdinov EM, Shestakov EE, Sirotkina AG, Zakharov AV. Prebiotic Syntheses Under Shock in the Water - Formamide - Potassium Bicarbonate - Sodium Hydroxide System. ORIGINS LIFE EVOL B 2019; 49:1-18. [PMID: 31004318 DOI: 10.1007/s11084-019-09575-8] [Citation(s) in RCA: 5] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 01/14/2019] [Accepted: 03/25/2019] [Indexed: 10/27/2022]
Abstract
Syntheses under shock in nitrogen bubbled samples of the water - formamide - bicarbonate - sodium hydroxide system at pH 8.63, 9.46 and 10.44 were performed in the stainless steel preservation capsules. The maximum temperature and pressure in the capsules reached 545 K and 12.5 GPa respectively. Using the LC-MS-MS analysis, the 21 synthesis products have been identified, including amines and polyamines, carboxamide, acetamide and urea derivatives, compounds containing aniline, pyrrolidine, pyrrole, imidazole, as well as alcohol groups. It was found that the Fischer-Tropsch-type syntheses with catalysis on the surface of the stainless steel of the conservation capsule associated with the adsorbed hydrogen cyanide reactions and transamidation processes play the main role in the shock syntheses. Formation reactions of all the above-mentioned compounds have been suggested. It was proposed that hydrogen cyanide, ammonia, isocyanic acid, aminonitrile, aminoacetonitrile, as well as adsorbed species H(a), CH(a), CH2(a), CHOH(a), NH2(a) and H2CNH(a) are especially important for the formation of the products. A reduction reaction of adsorbed bicarbonate with hydrogen to formaldehyde has been first postulated. In the studied system also classical reactions take place - Wöhler's synthesis of urea and Butlerov's synthesis of methenamine. It was suggest that material of meteorites may be an effective catalyst in the Fischer-Tropsch-type syntheses at falling of the iron-nickel meteorites in the water - formamide regions on the early Earth. It was concluded that life could have originated due to the impact of meteorites on alkaline water-formamide lakes located near volcanoes on the early Earth.
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Affiliation(s)
- Valery G Shtyrlin
- A.M. Butlerov Chemistry Institute, Kazan Federal University, Kremlevskaya St., 18, Kazan, Russian Federation, 420008.
| | - Valery A Borissenok
- Sarov Physical Technical Institute, National Research Nuclear University "MEPhI" (Moscow Engineering Physics Institute), Dukhov St., 6, Sarov, Russian Federation, 607184
| | - Nikita Yu Serov
- A.M. Butlerov Chemistry Institute, Kazan Federal University, Kremlevskaya St., 18, Kazan, Russian Federation, 420008
| | - Vladimir G Simakov
- Sarov Physical Technical Institute, National Research Nuclear University "MEPhI" (Moscow Engineering Physics Institute), Dukhov St., 6, Sarov, Russian Federation, 607184
- Russian Federal Nuclear Center, All-Russian Research Institute of Experimental Physics, Mir Pr., 37, Sarov, Russian Federation, 607188
| | - Vyacheslav A Bragunets
- Russian Federal Nuclear Center, All-Russian Research Institute of Experimental Physics, Mir Pr., 37, Sarov, Russian Federation, 607188
| | - Ivan R Trunin
- Sarov Physical Technical Institute, National Research Nuclear University "MEPhI" (Moscow Engineering Physics Institute), Dukhov St., 6, Sarov, Russian Federation, 607184
- Russian Federal Nuclear Center, All-Russian Research Institute of Experimental Physics, Mir Pr., 37, Sarov, Russian Federation, 607188
| | - Irina A Tereshkina
- Sarov Physical Technical Institute, National Research Nuclear University "MEPhI" (Moscow Engineering Physics Institute), Dukhov St., 6, Sarov, Russian Federation, 607184
- Russian Federal Nuclear Center, All-Russian Research Institute of Experimental Physics, Mir Pr., 37, Sarov, Russian Federation, 607188
| | - Sergey A Koshkin
- A.M. Butlerov Chemistry Institute, Kazan Federal University, Kremlevskaya St., 18, Kazan, Russian Federation, 420008
| | - Mikhail S Bukharov
- A.M. Butlerov Chemistry Institute, Kazan Federal University, Kremlevskaya St., 18, Kazan, Russian Federation, 420008
| | - Edward M Gilyazetdinov
- A.M. Butlerov Chemistry Institute, Kazan Federal University, Kremlevskaya St., 18, Kazan, Russian Federation, 420008
| | - Evgeny E Shestakov
- Sarov Physical Technical Institute, National Research Nuclear University "MEPhI" (Moscow Engineering Physics Institute), Dukhov St., 6, Sarov, Russian Federation, 607184
- Russian Federal Nuclear Center, All-Russian Research Institute of Experimental Physics, Mir Pr., 37, Sarov, Russian Federation, 607188
| | - Anna G Sirotkina
- Sarov Physical Technical Institute, National Research Nuclear University "MEPhI" (Moscow Engineering Physics Institute), Dukhov St., 6, Sarov, Russian Federation, 607184
| | - Alexey V Zakharov
- A.M. Butlerov Chemistry Institute, Kazan Federal University, Kremlevskaya St., 18, Kazan, Russian Federation, 420008
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29
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Rimola A, Sodupe M, Ugliengo P. Role of Mineral Surfaces in Prebiotic Chemical Evolution. In Silico Quantum Mechanical Studies. Life (Basel) 2019; 9:E10. [PMID: 30658501 PMCID: PMC6463156 DOI: 10.3390/life9010010] [Citation(s) in RCA: 35] [Impact Index Per Article: 7.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 12/01/2018] [Revised: 01/10/2019] [Accepted: 01/12/2019] [Indexed: 01/07/2023] Open
Abstract
There is a consensus that the interaction of organic molecules with the surfaces of naturally-occurring minerals might have played a crucial role in chemical evolution and complexification in a prebiotic era. The hurdle of an overly diluted primordial soup occurring in the free ocean may have been overcome by the adsorption and concentration of relevant molecules on the surface of abundant minerals at the sea shore. Specific organic⁻mineral interactions could, at the same time, organize adsorbed molecules in well-defined orientations and activate them toward chemical reactions, bringing to an increase in chemical complexity. As experimental approaches cannot easily provide details at atomic resolution, the role of in silico computer simulations may fill that gap by providing structures and reactive energy profiles at the organic⁻mineral interface regions. Accordingly, numerous computational studies devoted to prebiotic chemical evolution induced by organic⁻mineral interactions have been proposed. The present article aims at reviewing recent in silico works, mainly focusing on prebiotic processes occurring on the mineral surfaces of clays, iron sulfides, titanium dioxide, and silica and silicates simulated through quantum mechanical methods based on the density functional theory (DFT). The DFT is the most accurate way in which chemists may address the behavior of the molecular world through large models mimicking chemical complexity. A perspective on possible future scenarios of research using in silico techniques is finally proposed.
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Affiliation(s)
- Albert Rimola
- Departament de Química, Universitat Autònoma de Barcelona, 08193 Bellaterra, Spain.
| | - Mariona Sodupe
- Departament de Química, Universitat Autònoma de Barcelona, 08193 Bellaterra, Spain.
| | - Piero Ugliengo
- Dipartimento di Chimica and Nanostructured Interfaces and Surfaces (NIS), Università degli Studi di Torino, Via P. Giuria 7, 10125 Torino, Italy.
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Oberli S, González-Vázquez J, Rodríguez-Perelló E, Sodupe M, Martín F, Picón A. Site-selective-induced isomerization of formamide. Phys Chem Chem Phys 2019; 21:25626-25634. [DOI: 10.1039/c9cp04441h] [Citation(s) in RCA: 4] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.8] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 01/06/2023]
Abstract
We theoretically demonstrate the possibility to site-selectively induce and track isomerization in formamide by using a femtosecond X-ray-pump/X-ray-probe scheme.
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Affiliation(s)
- S. Oberli
- Departamento de Química
- Universidad Autónoma de Madrid
- 28049 Madrid
- Spain
| | | | | | - M. Sodupe
- Departament de Química
- Universitat Autònoma de Barcelona
- 08193 Bellaterra
- Spain
| | - F. Martín
- Departamento de Química
- Universidad Autónoma de Madrid
- 28049 Madrid
- Spain
- Instituto Madrileño de Estudios Avanzados en Nanociencia (IMDEA-Nanociencia)
| | - A. Picón
- Departamento de Química
- Universidad Autónoma de Madrid
- 28049 Madrid
- Spain
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31
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Kaur S, Sharma P. Radical pathways for the formation of non-canonical nucleobases in prebiotic environments. RSC Adv 2019; 9:36530-36538. [PMID: 35539032 PMCID: PMC9075218 DOI: 10.1039/c9ra08001e] [Citation(s) in RCA: 4] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.8] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 10/02/2019] [Accepted: 11/04/2019] [Indexed: 11/21/2022] Open
Abstract
Due to the inability of canonical nucleobases (adenine, uracil, guanine and cytosine) to spontaneously form ribonucleosides and base pairs in free form in solution, RNA is believed to be preceded by a primitive information polymer (preRNA). The preRNA is proposed to contain non-canonical, heterocyclic bases that possess the above-mentioned capabilities. An extensive search for such candidate heterocycles has recently revealed that barbituric acid (BA), melamine (MM) and 2,4,6-triaminopyrimidine (TAP) have the capability to spontaneously form ribonucleosides and supramolecular assemblies that are held by Watson–Crick type hydrogen-bonded base pairs involving BA, MM, TAP and cyanuric acid (CA) heterocycles. However, despite this evidence, the prebiotic formation pathways of these heterocycles have not been fully explored. Further, for these heterocycles to interact and assemble into informational polymers under prebiotic conditions, it is expected that they should have formed in the proximity of each other. In this context, the present work employs density functional theory to propose the associated radical based formation pathways starting from cyanamide. Our pathways suggest that cyanamide, its derivatives (malonic acid and urea) and malononitrile can form BA, MM, CA and TAP in the presence of ammonia and hydroxyl radicals. In addition to originating from a common precursor, similarities in the highest reaction barriers (13 to 20 kcal mol−1) obtained for these pathways suggest that these heterocycles may likely form under similar conditions. Specifically, these pathways are relevant to high energy events such as meteoritic impact during the late heavy bombardment period on the early earth, which would have created conditions where radicals might have formed in reasonable concentrations. Overall, the present study emphasizes the importance of cyanamide in prebiotic heterocycle formation. The study explores radical-assisted formations of the nucleobase components of primitive genetics from cyanamide and related precursors in impact events.![]()
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Affiliation(s)
- Sarabjeet Kaur
- Computational Biochemistry Laboratory
- Department of Chemistry and Centre for Advanced Studies in Chemistry
- Panjab University
- Chandigarh
- India
| | - Purshotam Sharma
- Computational Biochemistry Laboratory
- Department of Chemistry and Centre for Advanced Studies in Chemistry
- Panjab University
- Chandigarh
- India
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32
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Nakashima S, Kebukawa Y, Kitadai N, Igisu M, Matsuoka N. Geochemistry and the Origin of Life: From Extraterrestrial Processes, Chemical Evolution on Earth, Fossilized Life's Records, to Natures of the Extant Life. Life (Basel) 2018; 8:E39. [PMID: 30241342 PMCID: PMC6315873 DOI: 10.3390/life8040039] [Citation(s) in RCA: 13] [Impact Index Per Article: 2.2] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 08/10/2018] [Revised: 09/15/2018] [Accepted: 09/17/2018] [Indexed: 11/18/2022] Open
Abstract
In 2001, the first author (S.N.) led the publication of a book entitled "Geochemistry and the origin of life" in collaboration with Dr. Andre Brack aiming to figure out geo- and astro-chemical processes essential for the emergence of life. Since then, a great number of research progress has been achieved in the relevant topics from our group and others, ranging from the extraterrestrial inputs of life's building blocks, the chemical evolution on Earth with the aid of mineral catalysts, to the fossilized records of ancient microorganisms. Here, in addition to summarizing these findings for the origin and early evolution of life, we propose a new hypothesis for the generation and co-evolution of photosynthesis with the redox and photochemical conditions on the Earth's surface. Besides these bottom-up approaches, we introduce an experimental study on the role of water molecules in the life's function, focusing on the transition from live, dormant, and dead states through dehydration/hydration. Further spectroscopic studies on the hydrogen bonding behaviors of water molecules in living cells will provide important clues to solve the complex nature of life.
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Affiliation(s)
- Satoru Nakashima
- Department of Earth and Space Science, Osaka University, Toyonaka, Osaka 560-0043, Japan.
- Undergraduate School of Physics, Osaka University, Toyonaka, Osaka 560-0043, Japan.
| | - Yoko Kebukawa
- Department of Earth and Space Science, Osaka University, Toyonaka, Osaka 560-0043, Japan.
- Faculty of Engineering, Yokohama National University, 79-5 Tokiwadai, Hodogaya-ku, Yokohama 240-8501, Japan.
| | - Norio Kitadai
- Earth-Life Science Institute, Tokyo Institute of Technology, 2-12-1, Ookayama, Meguro-ku, Tokyo 152-8550, Japan.
| | - Motoko Igisu
- Department of Subsurface Geobiological Analysis and Research, Japan Agency for Marine-Earth Science and Technology (JAMSTEC), Kanagawa 237-0061, Japan.
| | - Natsuki Matsuoka
- Undergraduate School of Physics, Osaka University, Toyonaka, Osaka 560-0043, Japan.
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33
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Chemomimesis and Molecular Darwinism in Action: From Abiotic Generation of Nucleobases to Nucleosides and RNA. Life (Basel) 2018; 8:life8020024. [PMID: 29925796 PMCID: PMC6027154 DOI: 10.3390/life8020024] [Citation(s) in RCA: 10] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.7] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 05/23/2018] [Revised: 06/14/2018] [Accepted: 06/19/2018] [Indexed: 01/26/2023] Open
Abstract
Molecular Darwinian evolution is an intrinsic property of reacting pools of molecules resulting in the adaptation of the system to changing conditions. It has no a priori aim. From the point of view of the origin of life, Darwinian selection behavior, when spontaneously emerging in the ensembles of molecules composing prebiotic pools, initiates subsequent evolution of increasingly complex and innovative chemical information. On the conservation side, it is a posteriori observed that numerous biological processes are based on prebiotically promptly made compounds, as proposed by the concept of Chemomimesis. Molecular Darwinian evolution and Chemomimesis are principles acting in balanced cooperation in the frame of Systems Chemistry. The one-pot synthesis of nucleosides in radical chemistry conditions is possibly a telling example of the operation of these principles. Other indications of similar cases of molecular evolution can be found among biogenic processes.
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34
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Eguaogie O, Vyle JS, Conlon PF, Gîlea MA, Liang Y. Mechanochemistry of nucleosides, nucleotides and related materials. Beilstein J Org Chem 2018; 14:955-970. [PMID: 29765475 PMCID: PMC5942386 DOI: 10.3762/bjoc.14.81] [Citation(s) in RCA: 58] [Impact Index Per Article: 9.7] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 12/31/2017] [Accepted: 04/20/2018] [Indexed: 12/24/2022] Open
Abstract
The application of mechanical force to induce the formation and cleavage of covalent bonds is a rapidly developing field within organic chemistry which has particular value in reducing or eliminating solvent usage, enhancing reaction rates and also in enabling the preparation of products which are otherwise inaccessible under solution-phase conditions. Mechanochemistry has also found recent attention in materials chemistry and API formulation during which rearrangement of non-covalent interactions give rise to functional products. However, this has been known to nucleic acids science almost since its inception in the late nineteenth century when Miescher exploited grinding to facilitate disaggregation of DNA from tightly bound proteins through selective denaturation of the latter. Despite the wide application of ball milling to amino acid chemistry, there have been limited reports of mechanochemical transformations involving nucleoside or nucleotide substrates on preparative scales. A survey of these reactions is provided, the majority of which have used a mixer ball mill and display an almost universal requirement for liquid to be present within the grinding vessel. Mechanochemistry of charged nucleotide substrates, in particular, provides considerable benefits both in terms of efficiency (reducing total processing times from weeks to hours) and by minimising exposure to aqueous conditions, access to previously elusive materials. In the absence of large quantities of solvent and heating, side-reactions can be reduced or eliminated. The central contribution of mechanochemistry (and specifically, ball milling) to the isolation of biologically active materials derived from nuclei by grinding will also be outlined. Finally non-covalent associative processes involving nucleic acids and related materials using mechanochemistry will be described: specifically, solid solutions, cocrystals, polymorph transitions, carbon nanotube dissolution and inclusion complex formation.
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Affiliation(s)
- Olga Eguaogie
- School of Chemistry and Chemical Engineering, Queen’s University Belfast, David Keir Building, Stranmillis Road, Belfast BT9 5AG, UK
| | - Joseph S Vyle
- School of Chemistry and Chemical Engineering, Queen’s University Belfast, David Keir Building, Stranmillis Road, Belfast BT9 5AG, UK
| | - Patrick F Conlon
- School of Chemistry and Chemical Engineering, Queen’s University Belfast, David Keir Building, Stranmillis Road, Belfast BT9 5AG, UK
| | - Manuela A Gîlea
- School of Chemistry and Chemical Engineering, Queen’s University Belfast, David Keir Building, Stranmillis Road, Belfast BT9 5AG, UK
| | - Yipei Liang
- School of Chemistry and Chemical Engineering, Queen’s University Belfast, David Keir Building, Stranmillis Road, Belfast BT9 5AG, UK
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35
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Jeilani YA, Ross B, Aweis N, Fearce C, Minh Hung H, Nguyen MT. Reaction Routes for Experimentally Observed Intermediates in the Prebiotic Formation of Nucleobases under High-Temperature Conditions. J Phys Chem A 2018; 122:2992-3003. [DOI: 10.1021/acs.jpca.7b11466] [Citation(s) in RCA: 6] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 11/30/2022]
Affiliation(s)
- Yassin A. Jeilani
- Department of Chemistry and Biochemistry, Spelman College, 350 Spelman Lane, S.W., Box 1134, Atlanta, Georgia 30314, United States
- Department of Chemistry, College of Science, University of Hail, Hail, Saudi Arabia
| | - Brooke Ross
- Department of Chemistry and Biochemistry, Spelman College, 350 Spelman Lane, S.W., Box 1134, Atlanta, Georgia 30314, United States
| | - Nasrin Aweis
- Department of Chemistry and Biochemistry, Spelman College, 350 Spelman Lane, S.W., Box 1134, Atlanta, Georgia 30314, United States
| | - Chelesa Fearce
- Department of Chemistry and Biochemistry, Spelman College, 350 Spelman Lane, S.W., Box 1134, Atlanta, Georgia 30314, United States
| | - Huynh Minh Hung
- Department of Chemistry, KU Leuven, Celestijnenlaan 200F, B-3001 Leuven, Belgium
| | - Minh Tho Nguyen
- Department of Chemistry, KU Leuven, Celestijnenlaan 200F, B-3001 Leuven, Belgium
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36
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Saladino R, Botta L, Di Mauro E. The Prevailing Catalytic Role of Meteorites in Formamide Prebiotic Processes. Life (Basel) 2018; 8:life8010006. [PMID: 29470412 PMCID: PMC5871938 DOI: 10.3390/life8010006] [Citation(s) in RCA: 13] [Impact Index Per Article: 2.2] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 11/24/2017] [Revised: 01/26/2018] [Accepted: 02/18/2018] [Indexed: 01/03/2023] Open
Abstract
Meteorites are consensually considered to be involved in the origin of life on this Planet for several functions and at different levels: (i) as providers of impact energy during their passage through the atmosphere; (ii) as agents of geodynamics, intended both as starters of the Earth’s tectonics and as activators of local hydrothermal systems upon their fall; (iii) as sources of organic materials, at varying levels of limited complexity; and (iv) as catalysts. The consensus about the relevance of these functions differs. We focus on the catalytic activities of the various types of meteorites in reactions relevant for prebiotic chemistry. Formamide was selected as the chemical precursor and various sources of energy were analyzed. The results show that all the meteorites and all the different energy sources tested actively afford complex mixtures of biologically-relevant compounds, indicating the robustness of the formamide-based prebiotic chemistry involved. Although in some cases the yields of products are quite small, the diversity of the detected compounds of biochemical significance underlines the prebiotic importance of meteorite-catalyzed condensation of formamide.
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Affiliation(s)
- Raffaele Saladino
- Biological and Ecological Department, University of Tuscia, 01100 Viterbo, Italy.
| | - Lorenzo Botta
- Biological and Ecological Department, University of Tuscia, 01100 Viterbo, Italy.
| | - Ernesto Di Mauro
- Biological and Ecological Department, University of Tuscia, 01100 Viterbo, Italy.
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37
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Šponer JE, Szabla R, Góra RW, Saitta AM, Pietrucci F, Saija F, Di Mauro E, Saladino R, Ferus M, Civiš S, Šponer J. Prebiotic synthesis of nucleic acids and their building blocks at the atomic level - merging models and mechanisms from advanced computations and experiments. Phys Chem Chem Phys 2018; 18:20047-66. [PMID: 27136968 DOI: 10.1039/c6cp00670a] [Citation(s) in RCA: 42] [Impact Index Per Article: 7.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 01/20/2023]
Abstract
The origin of life on Earth is one of the most fascinating questions of contemporary science. Extensive research in the past decades furnished diverse experimental proposals for the emergence of first informational polymers that could form the basis of the early terrestrial life. Side by side with the experiments, the fast development of modern computational chemistry methods during the last 20 years facilitated the use of in silico modelling tools to complement the experiments. Modern computations can provide unique atomic-level insights into the structural and electronic aspects as well as the energetics of key prebiotic chemical reactions. Many of these insights are not directly obtainable from the experimental techniques and the computations are thus becoming indispensable for proper interpretation of many experiments and for qualified predictions. This review illustrates the synergy between experiment and theory in the origin of life research focusing on the prebiotic synthesis of various nucleic acid building blocks and on the self-assembly of nucleotides leading to the first functional oligonucleotides.
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Affiliation(s)
- Judit E Šponer
- Institute of Biophysics, Academy of Sciences of the Czech Republic, Královopolská 135, CZ-612 65 Brno, Czech Republic. and CEITEC - Central European Institute of Technology, Masaryk University, Campus Bohunice, Kamenice 5, CZ-62500 Brno, Czech Republic
| | - Rafał Szabla
- Institute of Biophysics, Academy of Sciences of the Czech Republic, Královopolská 135, CZ-612 65 Brno, Czech Republic.
| | - Robert W Góra
- Theoretical Chemistry Group, Institute of Physical and Theoretical Chemistry, Wrocław University of Technology, Wybrzeże Wyspiańskiego 27, 50-370 Wrocław, Poland
| | - A Marco Saitta
- Sorbonne Universités, Université Pierre et Marie Curie Paris 6, CNRS, Institut de Minéralogie, de Physique des Matériaux et de Cosmochimie, Muséum National d'Histoire Naturelle, Institut de Recherche pour le Développement, UMR 7590, F-75005 Paris, France
| | - Fabio Pietrucci
- Sorbonne Universités, Université Pierre et Marie Curie Paris 6, CNRS, Institut de Minéralogie, de Physique des Matériaux et de Cosmochimie, Muséum National d'Histoire Naturelle, Institut de Recherche pour le Développement, UMR 7590, F-75005 Paris, France
| | - Franz Saija
- CNR-IPCF, Viale Ferdinando Stagno d'Alcontres 37, 98158 Messina, Italy
| | - Ernesto Di Mauro
- Dipartimento di Biologia e Biotecnologie "Charles Darwin", "Sapienza" Università di Roma, Piazzale Aldo Moro 5, Rome 00185, Italy
| | - Raffaele Saladino
- Dipartimento di Scienze Ecologiche e Biologiche Università della Tuscia, Via San Camillo De Lellis, 01100 Viterbo, Italy
| | - Martin Ferus
- J. Heyrovský Institute of Physical Chemistry, Academy of Sciences of the Czech Republic, Dolejškova 3, CZ-182 23 Prague 8, Czech Republic
| | - Svatopluk Civiš
- J. Heyrovský Institute of Physical Chemistry, Academy of Sciences of the Czech Republic, Dolejškova 3, CZ-182 23 Prague 8, Czech Republic
| | - Jiří Šponer
- Institute of Biophysics, Academy of Sciences of the Czech Republic, Královopolská 135, CZ-612 65 Brno, Czech Republic. and CEITEC - Central European Institute of Technology, Masaryk University, Campus Bohunice, Kamenice 5, CZ-62500 Brno, Czech Republic
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38
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Civiš M, Ferus M, Knížek A, Kubelík P, Kamas M, Španěl P, Dryahina K, Shestivska V, Juha L, Skřehot P, Laitl V, Civiš S. Spectroscopic investigations of high-energy-density plasma transformations in a simulated early reducing atmosphere containing methane, nitrogen and water. Phys Chem Chem Phys 2018; 18:27317-27325. [PMID: 27722540 DOI: 10.1039/c6cp05025e] [Citation(s) in RCA: 11] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.8] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 11/21/2022]
Abstract
Large-scale plasma was created in gas mixtures containing methane using high-power laser-induced dielectric breakdown (LIDB). The composition of the mixtures corresponded to a cometary and/or meteoritic impact into the early atmosphere of either Titan or Earth. A multiple-centimeter-sized fireball was created by focusing a single 100 J, 450 ps near-infrared laser pulse into the center of a 15 L gas cell. The excited reaction intermediates formed during the various stages of the LIDB plasma chemical evolution were investigated using optical emission spectroscopy (OES) with temporal resolution. The chemical consequences of laser-produced plasma generation in a CH4-N2-H2O mixture were investigated using high resolution Fourier-transform infrared absorption spectroscopy (FTIR) and gas selected ion flow tube spectrometry (SIFT). Several simple inorganic and organic compounds were identified in the reaction mixture exposed to ten laser sparks. Deuterated water (D2O) in a gas mixture was used to separate several of the produced isotopomers of acetylene, which were then quantified using the FTIR technique.
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Affiliation(s)
- Martin Civiš
- J. Heyrovský Institute of Physical Chemistry, Czech Academy of Sciences, Dolejškova 3, 182 23 Prague 8, Czech Republic.
| | - Martin Ferus
- J. Heyrovský Institute of Physical Chemistry, Czech Academy of Sciences, Dolejškova 3, 182 23 Prague 8, Czech Republic.
| | - Antonín Knížek
- J. Heyrovský Institute of Physical Chemistry, Czech Academy of Sciences, Dolejškova 3, 182 23 Prague 8, Czech Republic.
| | - Petr Kubelík
- J. Heyrovský Institute of Physical Chemistry, Czech Academy of Sciences, Dolejškova 3, 182 23 Prague 8, Czech Republic. and Institute of Physics, Czech Academy of Sciences, Na Slovance 2, 182 21 Prague 8, Czech Republic
| | - Michal Kamas
- J. Heyrovský Institute of Physical Chemistry, Czech Academy of Sciences, Dolejškova 3, 182 23 Prague 8, Czech Republic.
| | - Patrik Španěl
- J. Heyrovský Institute of Physical Chemistry, Czech Academy of Sciences, Dolejškova 3, 182 23 Prague 8, Czech Republic.
| | - Ksenia Dryahina
- J. Heyrovský Institute of Physical Chemistry, Czech Academy of Sciences, Dolejškova 3, 182 23 Prague 8, Czech Republic.
| | - Violetta Shestivska
- J. Heyrovský Institute of Physical Chemistry, Czech Academy of Sciences, Dolejškova 3, 182 23 Prague 8, Czech Republic.
| | - Libor Juha
- Institute of Physics, Czech Academy of Sciences, Na Slovance 2, 182 21 Prague 8, Czech Republic and Institute of Plasma Physics, Czech Academy of Sciences, Za Slovankou 3, 182 00 Prague 8, Czech Republic
| | - Petr Skřehot
- Safety and Health Expert Institute, Ostrovského 253, 150 00 Prague 5, Czech Republic
| | - Vojtěch Laitl
- J. Heyrovský Institute of Physical Chemistry, Czech Academy of Sciences, Dolejškova 3, 182 23 Prague 8, Czech Republic. and František Krejčí Observatory, K Letišti 144, 36001 Carlsbad, Czech Republic
| | - Svatopluk Civiš
- J. Heyrovský Institute of Physical Chemistry, Czech Academy of Sciences, Dolejškova 3, 182 23 Prague 8, Czech Republic.
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39
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Gahlaut A, Paranjothy M. Unimolecular decomposition of formamide via direct chemical dynamics simulations. Phys Chem Chem Phys 2018. [DOI: 10.1039/c8cp00541a] [Citation(s) in RCA: 10] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.7] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 11/21/2022]
Abstract
Classical chemical dynamics simulations show that formamide (NH2CHO) can dissociate via multiple pathways, either by direct dissociations or via intramolecular rearrangements to different isomers followed by dissociation.
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Affiliation(s)
- Anchal Gahlaut
- Department of Chemistry, Indian Institute of Technology Jodhpur
- Jodhpur
- India
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40
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High Energy Radical Chemistry Formation of HCN-rich Atmospheres on early Earth. Sci Rep 2017; 7:6275. [PMID: 28740207 PMCID: PMC5524942 DOI: 10.1038/s41598-017-06489-1] [Citation(s) in RCA: 42] [Impact Index Per Article: 6.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 02/09/2017] [Accepted: 06/13/2017] [Indexed: 11/08/2022] Open
Abstract
Recent results in prebiotic chemistry implicate hydrogen cyanide (HCN) as the source of carbon and nitrogen for the synthesis of nucleotide, amino acid and lipid building blocks. HCN can be produced during impact events by reprocessing of carbonaceous and nitrogenous materials from both the impactor and the atmosphere; it can also be produced from these materials by electrical discharge. Here we investigate the effect of high energy events on a range of starting mixtures representative of various atmosphere-impactor volatile combinations. Using continuously scanning time–resolved spectrometry, we have detected ·CN radical and excited CO as the initially most abundant products. Cyano radicals and excited carbon monoxide molecules in particular are reactive, energy-rich species, but are resilient owing to favourable Franck–Condon factors. The subsequent reactions of these first formed excited species lead to the production of ground-state prebiotic building blocks, principally HCN.
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41
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Ferus M, Pietrucci F, Saitta AM, Knížek A, Kubelík P, Ivanek O, Shestivska V, Civiš S. Formation of nucleobases in a Miller-Urey reducing atmosphere. Proc Natl Acad Sci U S A 2017; 114:4306-4311. [PMID: 28396441 PMCID: PMC5410828 DOI: 10.1073/pnas.1700010114] [Citation(s) in RCA: 85] [Impact Index Per Article: 12.1] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 11/18/2022] Open
Abstract
The Miller-Urey experiments pioneered modern research on the molecular origins of life, but their actual relevance in this field was later questioned because the gas mixture used in their research is considered too reducing with respect to the most accepted hypotheses for the conditions on primordial Earth. In particular, the production of only amino acids has been taken as evidence of the limited relevance of the results. Here, we report an experimental work, combined with state-of-the-art computational methods, in which both electric discharge and laser-driven plasma impact simulations were carried out in a reducing atmosphere containing NH3 + CO. We show that RNA nucleobases are synthesized in these experiments, strongly supporting the possibility of the emergence of biologically relevant molecules in a reducing atmosphere. The reconstructed synthetic pathways indicate that small radicals and formamide play a crucial role, in agreement with a number of recent experimental and theoretical results.
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Affiliation(s)
- Martin Ferus
- J. Heyrovský Institute of Physical Chemistry, Czech Academy of Sciences, CZ18223 Prague 8, Czech Republic
| | - Fabio Pietrucci
- Institut de Minéralogie, de Physique des Matériaux et de Cosmochimie, Université Pierre et Marie Curie, Sorbonne Universités, CNRS, Muséum National d'Histoire Naturelle, Institut de Recherche pour le Développement, UMR 7590, F-75005 Paris, France
| | - Antonino Marco Saitta
- Institut de Minéralogie, de Physique des Matériaux et de Cosmochimie, Université Pierre et Marie Curie, Sorbonne Universités, CNRS, Muséum National d'Histoire Naturelle, Institut de Recherche pour le Développement, UMR 7590, F-75005 Paris, France
| | - Antonín Knížek
- J. Heyrovský Institute of Physical Chemistry, Czech Academy of Sciences, CZ18223 Prague 8, Czech Republic
- Department of Physical and Macromolecular Chemistry, Faculty of Science, Charles University in Prague, CZ12840 Prague 2, Czech Republic
| | - Petr Kubelík
- J. Heyrovský Institute of Physical Chemistry, Czech Academy of Sciences, CZ18223 Prague 8, Czech Republic
| | - Ondřej Ivanek
- J. Heyrovský Institute of Physical Chemistry, Czech Academy of Sciences, CZ18223 Prague 8, Czech Republic
| | - Violetta Shestivska
- J. Heyrovský Institute of Physical Chemistry, Czech Academy of Sciences, CZ18223 Prague 8, Czech Republic
| | - Svatopluk Civiš
- J. Heyrovský Institute of Physical Chemistry, Czech Academy of Sciences, CZ18223 Prague 8, Czech Republic;
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42
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Civiš S, Szabla R, Szyja BM, Smykowski D, Ivanek O, Knížek A, Kubelík P, Šponer J, Ferus M, Šponer JE. TiO2-catalyzed synthesis of sugars from formaldehyde in extraterrestrial impacts on the early Earth. Sci Rep 2016; 6:23199. [PMID: 26979666 PMCID: PMC4793247 DOI: 10.1038/srep23199] [Citation(s) in RCA: 23] [Impact Index Per Article: 2.9] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 10/21/2015] [Accepted: 02/24/2016] [Indexed: 01/05/2023] Open
Abstract
Recent synthetic efforts aimed at reconstructing the beginning of life on our planet point at the plausibility of scenarios fueled by extraterrestrial energy sources. In the current work we show that beyond nucleobases the sugar components of the first informational polymers can be synthesized in this way. We demonstrate that a laser-induced high-energy chemistry combined with TiO2 catalysis readily produces a mixture of pentoses, among them ribose, arabinose and xylose. This chemistry might be highly relevant to the Late Heavy Bombardment period of Earth’s history about 4–3.85 billion years ago. In addition, we present an in-depth theoretical analysis of the most challenging step of the reaction pathway, i.e., the TiO2-catalyzed dimerization of formaldehyde leading to glycolaldehyde.
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Affiliation(s)
- Svatopluk Civiš
- J. Heyrovský Institute of Physical Chemistry, Academy of Sciences of the Czech Republic, Dolejškova 3, CZ-182 23 Prague 8, Czech Republic
| | - Rafał Szabla
- Institute of Biophysics, Academy of Sciences of the Czech Republic, Královopolská 135, CZ-612 65 Brno, Czech Republic
| | - Bartłomiej M Szyja
- Inorganic Materials Chemistry, Department of Chemical Engineering and Chemistry, Eindhoven University of Technology, Den Dolech 2, 5612 AZ Eindhoven, The Netherlands.,Division of Fuels Chemistry and Technology, Faculty of Chemistry, Wrocław University of Technology, Gdańska 7/9, 50-344 Wrocław, Poland
| | - Daniel Smykowski
- Faculty of Mechanical and Power Engineering, Wrocław University of Technology, Ul. Wybrzeże Wyspiańskiego 27, 50-370, Wrocław
| | - Ondřej Ivanek
- J. Heyrovský Institute of Physical Chemistry, Academy of Sciences of the Czech Republic, Dolejškova 3, CZ-182 23 Prague 8, Czech Republic
| | - Antonín Knížek
- J. Heyrovský Institute of Physical Chemistry, Academy of Sciences of the Czech Republic, Dolejškova 3, CZ-182 23 Prague 8, Czech Republic
| | - Petr Kubelík
- J. Heyrovský Institute of Physical Chemistry, Academy of Sciences of the Czech Republic, Dolejškova 3, CZ-182 23 Prague 8, Czech Republic.,Institute of Physics, Czech Academy of Sciences, Na Slovance 2, 182 21 Prague 8, Czech Republic
| | - Jiří Šponer
- Institute of Biophysics, Academy of Sciences of the Czech Republic, Královopolská 135, CZ-612 65 Brno, Czech Republic.,CEITEC - Central European Institute of Technology, Masaryk University, Campus Bohunice, Kamenice 5, CZ-62500 Brno, Czech Republic
| | - Martin Ferus
- J. Heyrovský Institute of Physical Chemistry, Academy of Sciences of the Czech Republic, Dolejškova 3, CZ-182 23 Prague 8, Czech Republic
| | - Judit E Šponer
- Institute of Biophysics, Academy of Sciences of the Czech Republic, Královopolská 135, CZ-612 65 Brno, Czech Republic.,CEITEC - Central European Institute of Technology, Masaryk University, Campus Bohunice, Kamenice 5, CZ-62500 Brno, Czech Republic
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Horneck G, Walter N, Westall F, Grenfell JL, Martin WF, Gomez F, Leuko S, Lee N, Onofri S, Tsiganis K, Saladino R, Pilat-Lohinger E, Palomba E, Harrison J, Rull F, Muller C, Strazzulla G, Brucato JR, Rettberg P, Capria MT. AstRoMap European Astrobiology Roadmap. ASTROBIOLOGY 2016; 16:201-43. [PMID: 27003862 PMCID: PMC4834528 DOI: 10.1089/ast.2015.1441] [Citation(s) in RCA: 42] [Impact Index Per Article: 5.3] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 12/01/2015] [Accepted: 01/27/2016] [Indexed: 05/07/2023]
Abstract
The European AstRoMap project (supported by the European Commission Seventh Framework Programme) surveyed the state of the art of astrobiology in Europe and beyond and produced the first European roadmap for astrobiology research. In the context of this roadmap, astrobiology is understood as the study of the origin, evolution, and distribution of life in the context of cosmic evolution; this includes habitability in the Solar System and beyond. The AstRoMap Roadmap identifies five research topics, specifies several key scientific objectives for each topic, and suggests ways to achieve all the objectives. The five AstRoMap Research Topics are • Research Topic 1: Origin and Evolution of Planetary Systems • Research Topic 2: Origins of Organic Compounds in Space • Research Topic 3: Rock-Water-Carbon Interactions, Organic Synthesis on Earth, and Steps to Life • Research Topic 4: Life and Habitability • Research Topic 5: Biosignatures as Facilitating Life Detection It is strongly recommended that steps be taken towards the definition and implementation of a European Astrobiology Platform (or Institute) to streamline and optimize the scientific return by using a coordinated infrastructure and funding system.
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Affiliation(s)
- Gerda Horneck
- European Astrobiology Network Association
- Institute of Aerospace Medicine, German Aerospace Center (DLR), Köln, Germany
| | | | - Frances Westall
- Centre National de la Recherche Scientifique–Centre de Biophysique Moléculaire, Orleans, France
| | - John Lee Grenfell
- Institute for Planetary Research, German Aerospace Center (DLR), Berlin, Germany
| | - William F. Martin
- Institute of Molecular Evolution, Heinrich-Heine University of Düsseldorf, Düsseldorf, Germany
| | - Felipe Gomez
- INTA Centre for Astrobiology, Torrejón de Ardoz, Madrid, Spain
| | - Stefan Leuko
- Institute of Aerospace Medicine, German Aerospace Center (DLR), Köln, Germany
| | - Natuschka Lee
- Department of Ecology and Environmental Science, Umeå University, Umeå, Sweden
- Department of Microbiology, Technical University München, München, Germany
| | - Silvano Onofri
- Department of Ecological and Biological Sciences, University of Tuscia, Viterbo, Italy
| | - Kleomenis Tsiganis
- Department of Physics, Section of Astrophysics, Astronomy and Mechanics, Aristotle University of Thessaloniki, Thessaloniki, Greece
| | - Raffaele Saladino
- Department of Agrobiology and Agrochemistry, University of Tuscia, Viterbo, Italy
| | | | - Ernesto Palomba
- INAF–Institute for Space Astrophysics and Planetology, Rome, Italy
| | - Jesse Harrison
- Department of Microbiology and Ecosystem Science, University of Vienna, Vienna, Austria
| | - Fernando Rull
- Department of Condensed Matter Physics, Crystallography and Mineralogy, Valladolid University, Valladolid, Spain
| | | | | | | | - Petra Rettberg
- Institute of Aerospace Medicine, German Aerospace Center (DLR), Köln, Germany
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Šponer JE, Šponer J, Nováková O, Brabec V, Šedo O, Zdráhal Z, Costanzo G, Pino S, Saladino R, Di Mauro E. Emergence of the First Catalytic Oligonucleotides in a Formamide-Based Origin Scenario. Chemistry 2016; 22:3572-86. [PMID: 26807661 DOI: 10.1002/chem.201503906] [Citation(s) in RCA: 57] [Impact Index Per Article: 7.1] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 09/29/2015] [Indexed: 02/02/2023]
Abstract
50 years after the historical Miller-Urey experiment, the formamide-based scenario is perhaps the most powerful concurrent hypothesis for the origin of life on our planet besides the traditional HCN-based concept. The information accumulated during the last 15 years in this topic is astonishingly growing and nowadays the formamide-based model represents one of the most complete and coherent pathways leading from simple prebiotic precursors up to the first catalytically active RNA molecules. In this work, we overview the major events of this long pathway that have emerged from recent experimental and theoretical studies, mainly concentrating on the mechanistic, methodological, and structural aspects of this research.
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Affiliation(s)
- Judit E Šponer
- Institute of Biophysics, Academy of Sciences of the Czech Republic, Královopolská 135, 61265, Brno, Czech Republic. .,CEITEC - Central European Institute of Technology, Masaryk University, Campus Bohunice, Kamenice 5, 62500, Brno, Czech Republic.
| | - Jiří Šponer
- Institute of Biophysics, Academy of Sciences of the Czech Republic, Královopolská 135, 61265, Brno, Czech Republic.,CEITEC - Central European Institute of Technology, Masaryk University, Campus Bohunice, Kamenice 5, 62500, Brno, Czech Republic
| | - Olga Nováková
- Institute of Biophysics, Academy of Sciences of the Czech Republic, Královopolská 135, 61265, Brno, Czech Republic
| | - Viktor Brabec
- Institute of Biophysics, Academy of Sciences of the Czech Republic, Královopolská 135, 61265, Brno, Czech Republic
| | - Ondrej Šedo
- CEITEC - Central European Institute of Technology, Masaryk University, Campus Bohunice, Kamenice 5, 62500, Brno, Czech Republic
| | - Zbyněk Zdráhal
- CEITEC - Central European Institute of Technology, Masaryk University, Campus Bohunice, Kamenice 5, 62500, Brno, Czech Republic
| | - Giovanna Costanzo
- Istituto di Biologia e Patologia Molecolari, CNR, P.le Aldo Moro, 5, Rome, 00185, Italy
| | - Samanta Pino
- Dipartimento di Biologia e Biotecnologie "Charles Darwin", "Sapienza" Università di Roma, Piazzale Aldo Moro, 5, Rome, 00185, Italy
| | - Raffaele Saladino
- Dipartimento di Scienze Ecologiche e Biologiche, Università della Tuscia, Via San Camillo De Lellis, 01100, Viterbo, Italy
| | - Ernesto Di Mauro
- Dipartimento di Biologia e Biotecnologie "Charles Darwin", "Sapienza" Università di Roma, Piazzale Aldo Moro, 5, Rome, 00185, Italy
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45
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Jeilani YA, Williams PN, Walton S, Nguyen MT. Unified reaction pathways for the prebiotic formation of RNA and DNA nucleobases. Phys Chem Chem Phys 2016; 18:20177-88. [DOI: 10.1039/c6cp02686a] [Citation(s) in RCA: 27] [Impact Index Per Article: 3.4] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 11/21/2022]
Abstract
The reaction pathways for the prebiotic formation of nucleobases are complex and lead to the formation of a mixture of products.
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Affiliation(s)
- Yassin Aweis Jeilani
- Department of Chemistry and Biochemistry
- Spelman College
- Spelman Lane S.W
- Atlanta
- USA
| | - Phoenix N. Williams
- Department of Chemistry and Biochemistry
- Spelman College
- Spelman Lane S.W
- Atlanta
- USA
| | - Sofia Walton
- Department of Chemistry and Biochemistry
- Spelman College
- Spelman Lane S.W
- Atlanta
- USA
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Arruda MS, Medina A, Sousa JN, Mendes LAV, Marinho RRT, Prudente FV. Ionization and Fragmentation of Formamide Induced by Synchrotron Radiation in the Valence Region via Photoelectron Photoion Coincidence Measurements and Density Functional Theory Calculations. J Phys Chem A 2015; 119:10300-8. [DOI: 10.1021/acs.jpca.5b07464] [Citation(s) in RCA: 8] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.9] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 11/28/2022]
Affiliation(s)
- Manuela S. Arruda
- Instituto
de Física, Universidade Federal da Bahia, 40170-115 Salvador, Bahia, Brazil
- Centro
de Ciências Exatas e Tecnológicas, Universidade Federal do Recôncavo da Bahia, 44380-000 Cruz das Almas, Bahia, Brazil
| | - Aline Medina
- Instituto
de Física, Universidade Federal da Bahia, 40170-115 Salvador, Bahia, Brazil
| | - Josenilton N. Sousa
- Instituto
de Física, Universidade Federal da Bahia, 40170-115 Salvador, Bahia, Brazil
| | - Luiz A. V. Mendes
- Instituto
de Física, Universidade Federal da Bahia, 40170-115 Salvador, Bahia, Brazil
| | - Ricardo R. T. Marinho
- Instituto
de Física, Universidade Federal da Bahia, 40170-115 Salvador, Bahia, Brazil
| | - Frederico V. Prudente
- Instituto
de Física, Universidade Federal da Bahia, 40170-115 Salvador, Bahia, Brazil
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47
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Nguyen HT, Jeilani YA, Hung HM, Nguyen MT. Radical Pathways for the Prebiotic Formation of Pyrimidine Bases from Formamide. J Phys Chem A 2015. [DOI: 10.1021/acs.jpca.5b03625] [Citation(s) in RCA: 28] [Impact Index Per Article: 3.1] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 11/30/2022]
Affiliation(s)
| | - Yassin A. Jeilani
- Department
Chemistry and Biochemistry, Spelman College, Atlanta, Georgia 30314, United States
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48
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Meteorite-catalyzed synthesis of nucleosides and other prebiotic compounds. Proc Natl Acad Sci U S A 2015; 112:7109-10. [PMID: 26023190 DOI: 10.1073/pnas.1507471112] [Citation(s) in RCA: 15] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.7] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 11/18/2022] Open
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49
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Meteorite-catalyzed syntheses of nucleosides and of other prebiotic compounds from formamide under proton irradiation. Proc Natl Acad Sci U S A 2015; 112:E2746-55. [PMID: 25870268 DOI: 10.1073/pnas.1422225112] [Citation(s) in RCA: 118] [Impact Index Per Article: 13.1] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 01/03/2023] Open
Abstract
Liquid formamide has been irradiated by high-energy proton beams in the presence of powdered meteorites, and the products of the catalyzed resulting syntheses were analyzed by mass spectrometry. Relative to the controls (no radiation, or no formamide, or no catalyst), an extremely rich, variegate, and prebiotically relevant panel of compounds was observed. The meteorites tested were representative of the four major classes: iron, stony iron, chondrites, and achondrites. The products obtained were amino acids, carboxylic acids, nucleobases, sugars, and, most notably, four nucleosides: cytidine, uridine, adenosine, and thymidine. In accordance with theoretical studies, the detection of HCN oligomers suggests the occurrence of mechanisms based on the generation of radical cyanide species (CN·) for the synthesis of nucleobases. Given that many of the compounds obtained are key components of extant organisms, these observations contribute to outline plausible exogenous high-energy-based prebiotic scenarios and their possible boundary conditions, as discussed.
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