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Abiotic formation of RNA-like oligomers by montmorillonite catalysis: part II

Published online by Cambridge University Press:  02 January 2008

Gözen Ertem ,
Ann M. Snellinger-O'Brien ,
M. C. Ertem ,
D. A. Rogoff ,
Jason P. Dworkin ,
Murray V. Johnston  and
Robert M. Hazen
Gözen Ertem
Affiliation:
Geophysical Laboratory and NASA Astrobiology Institute, 5251 Broad Branch Road NW, Washington, DC 20015, USA Space Science Division, NASA Ames Research Center, Moffett Field, CA 94035, USA Astrochemistry Branch, NASA Goddard Space Flight Center, Greenbelt, Maryland 20771, USA
Ann M. Snellinger-O'Brien
Affiliation:
Department of Chemistry and Biochemistry, University of Delaware, Newark, DE 19716, USA
M. C. Ertem
Affiliation:
University Research Foundation, Maryland Advanced Development Laboratory, Greenbelt, MD 20770
D. A. Rogoff
Affiliation:
Space Science Division, NASA Ames Research Center, Moffett Field, CA 94035, USA
Jason P. Dworkin
Affiliation:
Astrochemistry Branch, NASA Goddard Space Flight Center, Greenbelt, Maryland 20771, USA
Murray V. Johnston
Affiliation:
Department of Chemistry and Biochemistry, University of Delaware, Newark, DE 19716, USA
Robert M. Hazen
Affiliation:
Geophysical Laboratory and NASA Astrobiology Institute, 5251 Broad Branch Road NW, Washington, DC 20015, USA
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Abstract

This work is an extension of our previous studies carried out to investigate the possible catalytic role of minerals in the abiotic synthesis of biologically important molecules. In the presence of montmorillonite, a member of the phyllosilicate group minerals that are abundant on Earth and identified on Mars, activated RNA monomers, namely 5′-phosphorimidazolides of nucleosides (ImpNs), undergo condensation reactions in aqueous electrolyte solution producing oligomers with similar structures to short RNA fragments. Analysis of the linear trimer isomers formed in the reaction of a mixture of activated adenosine and cytidine monomers (ImpA and ImpC, respectively) employing high-performance liquid chromatography, selective enzymatic hydrolysis and matrix-assisted laser desorption/ionization mass spectroscopy molecular weight measurements demonstrate that montmorillonite catalysis facilitates the formation of hetero-isomers containing 56% A- and 44% C-monomer incorporated in their structure. The results also show that 56% of the monomer units are linked together by RNA-like 3′, 5′-phosphodiester bonds. These results follow the same trend observed in our most recent work studying the reaction of activated adenosine and uridine monomers, and support Bernal's hypothesis proposing the possible catalytic role of minerals in the abiotic processes in the course of chemical evolution.

Keywords

chemical evolutionHPLCMALDI-MSmineral catalysismontmorilloniteoligonucleotidesRNA
Type
Research Article
Information
International Journal of Astrobiology , Volume 7 , Issue 1 , January 2008 , pp. 1 - 7
Copyright
Copyright © Cambridge University Press 2008

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