The possible role of montmorillonite clays in the spontaneous formation on the primitive earth of the phosphodiester bond in the presence of water was investigated in experiments measuring the binding of various nucleosides and nucleotides with Na(+)-montmorillonite 22A and the reactions of these compounds with a water-soluble carbodiimide. It was found that, at neutral pH, adenine derivatives bind stronger than the corresponding uracil derivatives, consistent with the protonation of the adenine by the acidic clay surface and a cationic binding of the protonated ring to the anionic clay surface. The reaction of the 5-prime-AMP with carbodiimide resulted in the formation of 2-prime,5-prime-pApA (18.9 percent), 3-prime,5-prime-pApA (11 percent), and AppA (4.8 percent). The yields of these oligomers obtained when poly(U) was used in place of the clay were 15.5 percent, 3.7 percent, and 14.9 percent AppA, respectively.
Mineral catalysis of the formation of the phosphodiester bond in aqueous solution - The possible role of montmorillonite clays
1989-01-01
Miscellaneous
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English
The possible role of clays in prebiotic peptide synthesis
Online Contents | 1974
|Clays as possible catalysts for peptide formation in the prebiotic era
Online Contents | 1976
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