Theoretical origin of life: iron-nickel phosphide (Introduction)

by David Turell , Saturday, January 02, 2016, 15:41 (3248 days ago) @ dhw

A mineral from meteorites may have provided phosphate on the Earth's surface for the start of life:-http://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2015/12/151216105118.htm-In previous work, Pasek and colleagues suggested that the ancient meteorites contained the iron-nickel phosphide mineral "schreibersite," and that when schreibersite came into contact with Earth's watery environment a phosphate, a salt, was released that scientists believe could have played a role in the development of "prebiotic" molecules.-In a recent study appearing in Nature Publishing Group's Scientific Reports, the researchers focused on the properties of schreibersite and conducted experiments with the mineral to better understand how -- in a chemical reaction with the corrosive effects of water called "phosphorylation" -- schreibersite could have provided the phosphate important to the emergence of early biological life.-***-To test their hypothesis, they built an early Earth model environment, an organic-rich aqueous solution in which schreibersite might react and corrode in a way similar to how events may have unfolded in prebiotic chemistry. The model they constructed provided an opportunity to observe the thermodynamics of phosphorylation reactions of a phosphorus-containing synthetic schreibersite, which they created to be structurally identical to its meteorite counterpart. (my bold)-A thorough exploration of the extent of phosphorylation of nucleosides (made of a base and a five carbon sugar) by schreibersite was necessary to evaluate its potential prebiotic importance," explained Gull, a post-doctoral fellow and visiting researcher at USF. "All of our experiments indicated that a basic pH, rather than acidic pH, was required for the production of phosphorylated products. Although phosphorylation can take place using a variety of phosphate minerals in non-aqueous solution, prebiotic oxidation in water is more likely given the dominance of water across the solar system."-The prebiotic reaction they duplicated in the laboratory may have been similar to the reactions that ultimately led to the emergence of metabolic molecules, such as adenosine triphosphate (ATP), which is called the 'molecule of life' because it is central to energy metabolism in all life.
 (my bold)-Comment: Early Earth did not have an "organic rich" set of oceans. Meteorites do not contain many useful organic compounds, but ATP is the energy engine of all life. The OOL lab folks keep trying to keep getting our tax supported research funds. I would not have funded this one.