Prebiotic N-(2-Aminoethyl)-Glycine (AEG)-Assisted Synthesis of Proto-RNA?

Quantum mechanical calculations are used to explore the thermodynamics of possible prebiotic synthesis of the building blocks of nucleic acids. Different combinations of D-ribofuranose (Ribf) and N-(2-aminoethyl)-glycine (AEG) (trifunctional connectors (TCs)); the nature of the Ribf, its anomeric form, and its ring puckering (conformation); and the nature of the nucleobases (recognition units (RUs)) are considered. The combinatorial explosion of possible nucleosides has been drastically reduced on physicochemical grounds followed by a detailed thermodynamic evaluation of alternative synthetic pathways. The synthesis of nucleosides containing N-(2-aminoethyl)-glycine (AEG) is predicted to be thermodynamically favored suggesting a possible role of AEG as a component of an ancestral proto-RNA that may have preceded today's nucleic acids. A new pathway for the building of free nucleotides (exemplified by 5'-uridine monophosphate (UMP)) and of AEG dipeptides is proposed. This new pathway leads to a spontaneous formation of free UMP assisted by an AEG nucleoside in an aqueous environment. This appears to be a workaround to the "water problem" that prohibits the synthesis of nucleotides in water.

Equilibrium and non-equilibrium furanose selection in the ribose isomerisation network

The exclusive presence of β-D-ribofuranose in nucleic acids is still a conundrum in prebiotic chemistry, given that pyranose species are substantially more stable at equilibrium. However, a precise characterisation of the relative furanose/pyranose fraction at temperatures higher than about 50 °C is still lacking. Here, we employ a combination of NMR measurements and statistical mechanics modelling to predict a population inversion between furanose and pyranose at equilibrium at high temperatures. More importantly, we show that a steady temperature gradient may steer an open isomerisation network into a non-equilibrium steady state where furanose is boosted beyond the limits set by equilibrium thermodynamics. Moreover, we demonstrate that nonequilibrium selection of furanose is maximum at optimal dissipation, as gauged by the temperature gradient and energy barriers for isomerisation. The predicted optimum is compatible with temperature drops found in hydrothermal vents associated with extremely fresh lava flows on the seafloor.

Synthetic connectivity, emergence, and self-regeneration in the network of prebiotic chemistry

The challenge of prebiotic chemistry is to trace the syntheses of life’s key building blocks from a handful of primordial substrates. Here we report a forward-synthesis algorithm that generates a full network of prebiotic chemical reactions accessible from these substrates under generally accepted conditions. This network contains both reported and previously unidentified routes to biotic targets, as well as plausible syntheses of abiotic molecules. It also exhibits three forms of nontrivial chemical emergence, as the molecules within the network can act as catalysts of downstream reaction types; form functional chemical systems, including self-regenerating cycles; and produce surfactants relevant to primitive forms of biological compartmentalization. To support these claims, computer-predicted, prebiotic syntheses of several biotic molecules as well as a multistep, self-regenerative cycle of iminodiacetic acid were validated by experiment.

Thermal Behavior of d-Ribose Adsorbed on Silica: Effect of Inorganic Salt Coadsorption and Significance for Prebiotic Chemistry

Understanding ribose reactivity is a crucial step in the "RNA world" scenario because this molecule is a component of all extant nucleotides that make up RNA. In solution, ribose is unstable and susceptible to thermal destruction. We examined how ribose behaves upon thermal activation when adsorbed on silica, either alone or with the coadsorption of inorganic salts (MgCl₂ , CaCl₂ , SrCl₂ , CuCl₂ , FeCl₂ , FeCl₃ , ZnCl₂ ). A combination of ¹³ C NMR, in situ IR, and TGA analyses revealed a variety of phenomena. When adsorbed alone, ribose remains stable up to 150 °C, at which point ring opening is observed, together with minor oxidation to a lactone. All the metal salts studied showed specific interactions with ribose after dehydration, resulting in the formation of polydentate metal ion complexes. Anomeric equilibria were affected, generally favoring ribofuranoses. Zn²⁺ stabilized ribose up to higher temperatures than bare silica (180 to 200 °C). Most other cations had an adverse effect on ribose stability, with ring opening already upon drying at 70 °C. In addition, alkaline earth cations catalyzed the dehydration of ribose to furfural and, to variable degrees, its further decarbonylation to furan. Transition-metal ions with open d-shells took part in redox reactions with ribose, either as reagents or as catalysts. These results allow the likelihood of prebiotic chemistry scenarios to be evaluated, and may also be of interest for the valorization of biomass-derived carbohydrates by heterogeneous catalysis.

Meteorite-catalyzed syntheses of nucleosides and of other prebiotic compounds from formamide under proton irradiation

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.