Excess of l-alanine in amino acids synthesized in a plasma torch generated by a hypervelocity meteorite impact reproduced in the laboratory. (15th October 2016)

• Record Type: Journal Article
• Authors: Managadze, George G.; Engel, Michael H.; Getty, Stephanie; Wurz, Peter; Brinckerhoff, William B.; Shokolov, Anatoly G.; Sholin, Gennady V.; Terent'ev, Sergey A.; Chumikov, Alexander E.; Skalkin, Alexander S.; Blank, Vladimir D.; Prokhorov, Vyacheslav M.; Managadze, Nina G.; Luchnikov, Konstantin A.
• Is Part Of: Planetary and space science. Volume 131(2016)
• Page Start: 70
• Page End: 78
• Publication Date: 2016-10-15
• Subjects: Space sciences -- Periodicals; Atmosphere, Upper -- Periodicals; Sciences spatiales -- Périodiques; Haute atmosphère -- Périodiques; 523
• DOI: 10.1016/j.pss.2016.07.005
• Languages: English
• ISSNs: 0032-0633

Abstract

Abstract: We present a laboratory reproduction of hypervelocity impacts of a carbon containing meteorite on a mineral substance representative of planetary surfaces. The physical conditions of the resulting impact plasma torch provide favorable conditions for abiogenic synthesis of protein amino acids: We identified glycine and alanine, and in smaller quantities serine, in the produced material. Moreover, we observe breaking of alanine mirror symmetry with L excess, which coincides with the bioorganic world. Therefore the selection of L-amino acids for the formation of proteins for living matter could have been the result from plasma processes occurring during the impact meteorites on the surface. This indicates that the plasma torch from meteorite impacts could play an important role in the formation of biomolecular homochirality. Thus, meteorite impacts possibly were the initial stage of this process and promoted conditions for the emergence of a living matter. Highlights: The impact plasma promotes formation complex organic compounds including polypetides. The formation of non-racemic chemicals from inanimate abiological matter. The chiral asymmetry is identical of the biochemical world. Sign of chiral asymmetry is controlled by local chiral fields of the impact plasma.