TY - JOUR
T1 - Pyrolysis of simple amino acids and nucleobases
T2 - Survivability limits and implications for extraterrestrial delivery
AU - Basiuk, Vladimir A.
AU - Douda, Janna
N1 - Funding Information:
This work was supported by grants from the National Council of Science and Technology of Mexico (CONACyT-25297-E) and the National Autonomous University of Mexico (DGAPA-IN102796). We would like to thank J. Mayo Greenberg and two anonymous reviewers for helpful suggestions and comments.
PY - 1999
Y1 - 1999
N2 - The idea of extraterrestrial delivery of organic matter to the early Earth is strongly supported by the detection of a large variety of organic compounds in the interstellar medium, comets, and carbonaceous chondrites. Whether organic compounds essential for the emergence and evolution of life, particularly amino acids and nucleic acid bases found in the meteorites, can be efficiently delivered by other space bodies is unclear and depends primarily on capability of the biomolecules to survive high temperatures during atmospheric deceleration and impacts to the terrestrial surface. In the present study we estimated survivability of simple amino acids (glycine, L-alanine, α-aminoisobutyric acid, L-valine and L-leucine), purines (adenine and guanine) and pyrimidines (uracil and cytosine) under rapid heating to temperatures of 400-1000°C under N2 or CO2 atmosphere. We have found that most of the compounds studied cannot survive the temperatures substantially higher than 700°C; however at 500-600°C, the recovery can be at a percent level (or even 10%-level for adenine, uracil, alanine, and valine). The final fate of amino acids and nucleobases during the atmospheric deceleration and surface impacts is discussed depending on such factors as size of the space body, nature and altitude of the heating, chemical composition of the space body and of the atmosphere.
AB - The idea of extraterrestrial delivery of organic matter to the early Earth is strongly supported by the detection of a large variety of organic compounds in the interstellar medium, comets, and carbonaceous chondrites. Whether organic compounds essential for the emergence and evolution of life, particularly amino acids and nucleic acid bases found in the meteorites, can be efficiently delivered by other space bodies is unclear and depends primarily on capability of the biomolecules to survive high temperatures during atmospheric deceleration and impacts to the terrestrial surface. In the present study we estimated survivability of simple amino acids (glycine, L-alanine, α-aminoisobutyric acid, L-valine and L-leucine), purines (adenine and guanine) and pyrimidines (uracil and cytosine) under rapid heating to temperatures of 400-1000°C under N2 or CO2 atmosphere. We have found that most of the compounds studied cannot survive the temperatures substantially higher than 700°C; however at 500-600°C, the recovery can be at a percent level (or even 10%-level for adenine, uracil, alanine, and valine). The final fate of amino acids and nucleobases during the atmospheric deceleration and surface impacts is discussed depending on such factors as size of the space body, nature and altitude of the heating, chemical composition of the space body and of the atmosphere.
UR - http://www.scopus.com/inward/record.url?scp=0000276255&partnerID=8YFLogxK
U2 - 10.1016/s0032-0633(98)00136-6
DO - 10.1016/s0032-0633(98)00136-6
M3 - Artículo
SN - 0032-0633
VL - 47
SP - 577
EP - 584
JO - Planetary and Space Science
JF - Planetary and Space Science
IS - 3-4
ER -