NDLI: Sugar-driven prebiotic synthesis of 3,5(6)-dimethylpyrazin-2-one: a possible nucleobase of a primitive replication process.

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Sugar-driven prebiotic synthesis of 3,5(6)-dimethylpyrazin-2-one: a possible nucleobase of a primitive replication process.

Content Provider	World Health Organization (WHO)-Global Index Medicus
Author	Weber, Arthur L.
Description	Country affiliation: United States Author Affiliation: Weber AL ( SETI Institute, NASA Ames Research Center, Mail Stop 239-4, Moffett Field, CA 94035-1000, USA. Arthur.L.Weber@nasa.gov)
Abstract	Reaction of glyceraldehyde with alanine amide (or ammonia) under anaerobic aqueous conditions yielded 3,5(6)-dimethylpyrazin-2-one that is considered a possible complementary residue of a primitive replicating molecule that preceded RNA. Synthesis of the dimethylpyrazin-2-one isomers under mild aqueous conditions (65 degrees C, pH 5.5) from 100 mM glyceraldehyde and alanine amide (or ammonia) was complete in about 5 days. This synthesis using 25 mM glyceraldehyde and alanine amide gave a total pyrazinone yield of 9.3% consisting of 42% of the 3,5-dimethylprazin-2-one isomer and 58% of the 3,6-dimethylpyrazin-2-one isomer. The related synthesis of the dimethylpyrazin-2-one isomers from glyceraldehyde and ammonia was about 200-fold less efficient than the alanine amide reaction. This synthetic process is considered a reasonable model of origin-of-life chemistry because it uses plausible prebiotic substrates, and resembles modern biosynthesis by employing the energized carbon groups of sugars to drive the synthesis of small organic molecules. Possible sugar-driven pathways for the prebiotic synthesis of polymerizable 2-pyrazinone monomers are discussed.
File Format	HTM / HTML
ISSN	01696149
Issue Number	4
Volume Number	38
e-ISSN	15730875
Journal	Origins of Life and Evolution of Biospheres
Language	English
Publisher	Springer
Publisher Date	2008-08-01
Publisher Place	Netherlands
Access Restriction	Subscribed
Subject Keyword	Discipline Molecular Biology Discipline Biology Alanine Chemistry Carbohydrates Methods Pyrazines Amides Amines Ammonium Chloride Base Composition Evolution, Chemical Glyceraldehyde Hydrogen-ion Concentration Models, Chemical Origin Of Life Metabolism Spectrophotometry, Ultraviolet Time Factors Journal Article Research Support, U.s. Gov't, Non-p.h.s.
Content Type	Text
Resource Type	Article
Subject	Medicine Ecology, Evolution, Behavior and Systematics Space and Planetary Science

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