9:35 AM - 9:55 AM
[MIS07-03] Exploring the behavior of Phosphorus in Chemical Evolution toward the Origin of Life: A Case Study on the Synthesis of Phospholipids
★Invited Papers
Keywords:Phosphorus, origin of life, cell membrane, glycerophosphate, early earth , icy satellites
Phosphorus is an essential element found in DNA, RNA, ATP, and phospholipids, which are vital for life. When comparing the abundance of elements in the solar system and within living organisms, phosphorus stands out as particularly abundant within living organisms. Understanding the chemical evolution processes involving phosphorus is necessary for exploring the origins of life on Earth and the potential existence of life on other planets.
The biomembrane is a crucial constituent for living organisms, which separate cells from their external environment. Life in the present Earth used phospholipids for cell membranes which consisting of phosphoric acid, glycerol, and fatty acids. For the hydrophilic parts of phospholipid cell membranes composed of phosphoric acid and glycerol, while, glycerol-3-phosphate is used in eukaryotes and bacteria, whereas archaea use its isomer, glycerol-1-phosphate. Clarifying the synthesis conditions and isomeric ratios of glycerol-phosphates is expected to provide the constraints of chemical evolution environment progressed in early Earh. Therefore, in this study, the experiments simulating terrestrial environments of early Earth were conducted. The synthesis conditions and isomeric ratios of glycerol-phosphate were investigated in both wet-dry cycle and dry-down conditions. Furthermore, the possibility of phospholipid synthesis in subsurface oceans of icy satellites were investigated with high-pressure experiments using diamond anvil cells (DAC).
In the experiments simulating terrestrial environments on the early Earth's surface, phosphoric acid (H3PO4) and glycerol (C3H8O3) solution was mainly used as starting material with several catalysts. The experiments were conducted at 65°C for 1 to 15 days with the tube caps open. In the dry-wet cycle experiment, water was added every 24 hours. After the reaction, the derivatized samples were analyzed using GC/MS. When both urea and ammonium formate were added as catalysts, glycerol-phosphate was detected, and its yield increased with the amount of catalyst. In both wet-dry and dry-down experiments, glycerol phosphate was detected from samples reacting for 5-15 days and showing a positive correlation between reaction time and yield. In the presentation, In the presentation, the differences in the isomeric ratio of generated glycerol-phosphate will be reported.
The biomembrane is a crucial constituent for living organisms, which separate cells from their external environment. Life in the present Earth used phospholipids for cell membranes which consisting of phosphoric acid, glycerol, and fatty acids. For the hydrophilic parts of phospholipid cell membranes composed of phosphoric acid and glycerol, while, glycerol-3-phosphate is used in eukaryotes and bacteria, whereas archaea use its isomer, glycerol-1-phosphate. Clarifying the synthesis conditions and isomeric ratios of glycerol-phosphates is expected to provide the constraints of chemical evolution environment progressed in early Earh. Therefore, in this study, the experiments simulating terrestrial environments of early Earth were conducted. The synthesis conditions and isomeric ratios of glycerol-phosphate were investigated in both wet-dry cycle and dry-down conditions. Furthermore, the possibility of phospholipid synthesis in subsurface oceans of icy satellites were investigated with high-pressure experiments using diamond anvil cells (DAC).
In the experiments simulating terrestrial environments on the early Earth's surface, phosphoric acid (H3PO4) and glycerol (C3H8O3) solution was mainly used as starting material with several catalysts. The experiments were conducted at 65°C for 1 to 15 days with the tube caps open. In the dry-wet cycle experiment, water was added every 24 hours. After the reaction, the derivatized samples were analyzed using GC/MS. When both urea and ammonium formate were added as catalysts, glycerol-phosphate was detected, and its yield increased with the amount of catalyst. In both wet-dry and dry-down experiments, glycerol phosphate was detected from samples reacting for 5-15 days and showing a positive correlation between reaction time and yield. In the presentation, In the presentation, the differences in the isomeric ratio of generated glycerol-phosphate will be reported.