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Chirality and life.

W A Bonner1

  • 1Department of Chemistry, Stanford University, CA 94305, USA.

Origins of Life and Evolution of the Biosphere : the Journal of the International Society for the Study of the Origin of Life
|June 1, 1995
PubMed
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Chirality is essential for life. This study suggests extraterrestrial sources, like stardust, were necessary to deliver chiral molecules to early Earth, as abiotic mechanisms are insufficient for life's origin.

Area of Science:

  • Astrobiology
  • Organic Chemistry
  • Origin of Life Studies

Background:

  • Homochirality and chiral homogeneity are vital for the self-replication of modern biopolymers.
  • Chirality is fundamental for life, making a purely terrestrial origin of chiral molecules improbable.
  • Previous research highlights the advantages of chiral attributes in simpler polymeric systems.

Purpose of the Study:

  • To evaluate the viability of terrestrial abiotic mechanisms for the origin of chirality.
  • To propose an extraterrestrial source for the accumulation of chiral molecules on early Earth.
  • To explain the role of cosmic phenomena in delivering chiral molecules necessary for life's emergence.

Main Methods:

  • Review of chance and determinate abiotic mechanisms for chiral molecule origin.

Related Experiment Videos

  • Analysis of the turbulent prebiotic environment's impact on chiral molecule accumulation.
  • Description of a scenario involving asymmetric photolysis by polarized synchrotron radiation.

    • Main Results:

    • Terrestrial abiotic mechanisms are deemed nonviable for generating sufficient chiral molecules.
    • An ongoing extraterrestrial source is required for chiral molecule accumulation on primitive Earth.
    • Circularly polarized ultraviolet synchrotron radiation from supernovae can cause asymmetric photolysis.

    Conclusions:

    • Life's origin likely depended on chiral molecules delivered from space.
    • Interstellar dust grains with organic mantles are key sites for chiral molecule formation.
    • Transport of these chiral molecules to Earth via dust, comets, or asteroids is a plausible delivery mechanism.