Peptides and the origin of life1

Abstract Considering the state-of-the-art views of the geochemical conditions of the primitive earth, it seems most likely that peptides were produced ahead of all other oligomer precursors of biomolecules. Among all the reactions proposed so far for the formation of peptides under primordial earth conditions, the salt-induced peptide formation reaction in connection with adsorption processes on clay minerals would appear to be the simplest and most universal mechanism known to date. The properties of this reaction greatly favor the formation of biologically relevant peptides within a wide variation of environmental conditions such as temperature, pH, and the presence of inorganic compounds. The reaction-inherent preferences of certain peptide linkages make the argument of ‘statistical impossibility’ of the evolutionary formation of the ‘right’ peptides and proteins rather insignificant. Indeed, the fact that these sequences are reflected in the preferential sequences of membrane proteins of archaebacteria and prokaryonta distinctly indicates the relevance of this reaction for chemical peptide evolution. On the basis of these results and the recent findings of self-replicating peptides, some ideas have been developed as to the first steps leading to life on earth.

[1]  D. A. Usher The life puzzle: A. G. Cairns-Smith. Oliver and Boyd, Edinburgh, 1971. £1.95 , 1974 .

[2]  B. Rode,et al.  Salt induced peptide formation: on the selectivity of the copper induced peptide formation under possible prebiotic conditions , 1995 .

[3]  B. Rode,et al.  Glycine oligomerization on silica and alumina , 1997 .

[4]  B. Rode,et al.  HPLC and electrochemical investigations of the salt-induced peptide formation from glycine, alanine, valine and aspartic acid under possible prebiotic conditions , 1993 .

[5]  B. Rode,et al.  Ab initio calculations concerning the reaction mechanism of the copper(II) catalyzed glycine condensation in aqueous sodium chloride solution , 1992 .

[6]  Stanley L. Miller,et al.  Production of Some Organic Compounds under Possible Primitive Earth Conditions1 , 1955 .

[7]  E. Degens,et al.  Template Catalysis: Asymmetric Polymerization of Amino-acids on Clay Minerals , 1970, Nature.

[8]  M. Paecht-Horowitz Inorganic Clays as Possible Prebiotic Peptide Templates , 1973 .

[9]  E. Anders,et al.  Origin of organic matter in early solar system—III. Amino acids: Catalytic synthesis , 1971 .

[10]  G. Vogel A Sulfurous Start for Protein Synthesis? , 1998, Science.

[11]  J. F. Thompson,et al.  The reduction of S-methyl-L-cysteine sulfoxide and L-methionine sulfoxide in turnip and bean leaves. , 1966, Biochimica et biophysica acta.

[12]  R. MacElroy,et al.  Quantum chemical studies of a model for peptide bond formation. 2. Role of amine catalyst in formation of formamide and water from ammonia and formic acid , 1983 .

[13]  H. Yanagawa,et al.  Genesis of amino acids in the primeval sea. Formation of amino acids from sugars and ammonia in a modified sea medium. , 1980, Journal of biochemistry.

[14]  J. Bujdák,et al.  On the possible role of montmorillonites in prebiotic peptide formation , 1994 .

[15]  R. MacElroy,et al.  Quantum chemical studies of a model for peptide bond formation: formation of formamide and water from ammonia and formic acid , 1982 .

[16]  B. Theng The Chemistry of Clay-Organic Reactions , 2024 .

[17]  G. Wächtershäuser,et al.  Peptides by activation of amino acids with CO on (Ni,Fe)S surfaces: implications for the origin of life. , 1998, Science.

[18]  B. Rode,et al.  Silica, Alumina, and Clay-Catalyzed Alanine Peptide Bond Formation , 1997, Journal of Molecular Evolution.

[19]  C. Sagan,et al.  Shock Synthesis of Amino Acids in Simulated Primitive Environments , 1970, Science.

[20]  B. Rode,et al.  Salt-induced formation of mixed peptides under possible prebiotic conditions , 1991 .

[21]  Hyman Hartman,et al.  Clay minerals and the origin of life , 1986 .

[22]  J. D. Bernal,et al.  The Physical Basis of Life , 1949 .

[23]  R D MacElroy,et al.  Quantum chemical studies of a model for peptide bond formation. 3. Role of magnesium cation in formation of amide and water from ammonia and glycine. , 1984, Journal of the American Chemical Society.

[24]  L. Orgel The Origins of Life on the Earth , 1974 .

[25]  M. Paecht-Horowitz The mechanism of clay catalyzed polymerization of amino acid adenylates. , 1977, Bio Systems.

[26]  C. Sagan,et al.  Long-Wavelength Ultraviolet Photoproduction of Amino Acids on the Primitive Earth , 1971, Science.

[27]  B. Rode Monte Carlo simulation of the peptide condensing system 0.5 M cupric chloride/5 M sodium chloride/water , 1992 .

[28]  Juan R. Granja,et al.  A self-replicating peptide , 1996, Nature.

[29]  S. Kauffman Autocatalytic sets of proteins. , 1986 .

[30]  K. D. McKeegan,et al.  Evidence for life on Earth before 3,800 million years ago , 1996, Nature.

[31]  S. Miller A production of amino acids under possible primitive earth conditions. , 1953, Science.

[32]  A. Bairoch,et al.  The SWISS-PROT protein sequence data bank: current status. , 1994, Nucleic acids research.

[33]  G. Wächtershäuser,et al.  Activated acetic acid by carbon fixation on (Fe,Ni)S under primordial conditions. , 1997, Science.

[34]  Synthese de peptides: Preparation de l'acide hippurique par reaction des complexes montmorillonite-glycine avec l'acide benzoique , 1980, Clay Minerals.

[35]  J. Rabinowitz,et al.  Peptide Formation in the Presence of Linear or Cyclic Polyphosphates , 1969, Nature.

[36]  J. Lawless,et al.  Thermal Synthesis of Amino Acids from a Simulated Primitive Atmosphere , 1973, Nature.

[37]  B. Rode,et al.  Amino acid sequence preferences of the salt-induced peptide formation reaction in comparison to archaic cell protein composition , 1997 .

[38]  B. Rode,et al.  A Quantum Chemical Analysis of the Structural Entities in Aqueous Sodium Chloride Solution and Their Concentration Dependence , 1985 .

[39]  D. C. Morrison,et al.  Reduction of Carbon Dioxide in Aqueous Solutions by Ionizing Radiation , 1951 .

[40]  K. Bahadur,et al.  Photosynthesis of Amino-Acids from Paraformaldehyde involving the Fixation of Nitrogen in the Presence of Colloidal Molybdenum Oxide as Catalyst , 1958, Nature.

[41]  S. Fox,et al.  Thermal Synthesis of Natural Amino-Acids from a Postulated Primitive Terrestrial Atmosphere , 1964, Nature.

[42]  Reactions of Cu(II) with glycine and glycylglycine in aqueous solution at high concentrations of sodium chloride , 1990 .

[43]  P. Cloud Paleoecological Significance of the Banded Iron-Formation , 1973 .

[44]  S. Fox,et al.  The Thermal Copolymerization of Amino Acids Common to Protein1 , 1960 .

[45]  G. Sigvaldason,et al.  Collection and analysis of volcanic gases at Surtsey Iceland , 1968 .

[46]  J. Rabinowitz Note on the rôle of cyanides and polyphosphates in the formation of peptides in aqueous solutions of amino acids, at room temperature, as a possible prebiotic process. , 1971, Helvetica chimica acta.

[47]  J. Bujdák,et al.  Investigation on the mechanism of peptide chain prolongation on montmorillonite. , 1996, Journal of inorganic biochemistry.

[48]  A. Bairoch,et al.  The SWISS-PROT protein sequence data bank. , 1991, Nucleic acids research.

[49]  B. Rode,et al.  Possible Role of Copper and Sodium Chloride in Prebiotic Evolution of Peptides , 1989 .