Abstract
Leucine, α-methyl leucine and two peptides were exposed tospace conditions on board the MIR station during the Perseus-Exobiology mission. This long duration space mission was aimed at testing the delivery of prebiotic building blocks. Duringthis mission, two amino acids (leucine and α-methyl leucine) and two peptides (leucine-diketopiperazine and trileucine thioethylester) were exposed in Earth orbit for threemonths. Basalt, clay and meteorite powder were also mixed with the samples in order to simulate the effects of potential meteorite protection. Analysis of the material after the flight did not reveal any racemization or polymerisation but did provideinformation regarding photochemical pathways for the degradationof leucine and of the tripeptide. Amino acids appeared to be moresensitive to UV radiation than peptides, the cyclic dipeptide being found to be as particularly resistant. Meteorite powder which exhibits the highest absorption in Vacuum UltraViolet (VUV)afforded the best protection to the organic molecules whereasmontmorillonite clay, almost transparent in VUV, was the leastefficient. By varying the thickness of the meteorite, we found that the threshold for efficient protection against radiation was about 5 μm. The possible exogenous origin of biologicalbuilding blocks is discussed with respect to the stability to themolecules and the nature of the associated minerals.
Article PDF
Similar content being viewed by others
References
Anderson, J. and Smith, R. E.: 1994, 'Natural Orbital Environmental Guidelines for use in Aerospace Vehicle Development', NASA Technical Memorandum (4527).
Barbier, B., Chabin, A., Chaput, D. and Brack, A.: 1998, 'Photochemical processing of amino acids in Earth orbit', Planet. Space Sci. 46(4), 391–398.
Berkowitz, J., Ellison, G. B. and Gutman, D.: 1994, 'Three methods to measure RH bond energies', J. Phys. Chem. 98, 2744–2765.
Brueckner, G. E., Edlow, K. L., Floyd, L. E., Lean, J. L. and E. V. M.: 1993, 'The Solar Ultraviolet Spectral Irradiance Monitor (SUSIM) experiment on board the Upper Atmosphere Research Satellite (UARS)', J. Geophys. Res. 98(D6), 10,695–10,711.
Bujdak, J., Faybikova, K., Eder, A., Yonyai, Y. and Rode, B. M.: 1995, 'Peptide chain elongation: A possible role of montmorillonite in prebiotic synthesis of protein precursors', Orig. Life Evol. Biosphere 25, 431–441.
Bujdak, J. and Rode, B. M.: 1996, 'The effect of smectite composition on the catalysis of peptide bond formation', J. Mol. Evol. 43, 326–333.
Bujdak, J. and Rode, B. M.: 1997, Silica, Alumina, and clay-catalyzed alanine peptide bond formation. J. Mol. Evol. 45, 457–466.
Bujdak, J. and Rode, B. M.: 1999, 'The effect of clay structure on peptide bond formation catalysis', J. Mol. Catal. A: Chem. 144, 129–136.
Charnley, S. B.: 1997, 'On the Nature of Interstellar Organic Chemistry', in C. B. Cosmovici, S. Bowyer and D. Werthimer (eds), Astronomical and Biochemical Orgins and the Search for Life in the Universe, pp. 89–96.
Chyba, C. and Sagan, C.: 1992, 'Endogenous production, exogenous delivery and impact-shock synthesis of organic molecules: An inventory for the origins of life', Nature 355, 125–132.
Clark, D. T., Peeling, J. and Colling, L.: 1976, 'An experimental and theoretical investigation of the core level spectra of a series of amino acids, dipeptides and polypeptides', Biochim. Biophys. Acta 453(2), 533–545.
Collins, M. A. and Grant, R. A.: 1969, 'Ultraviolet light induced free radicals in glycine peptides in the solid state', Photochem. Photobiol. 9, 369–375.
Cooper, G., Kimmich, N., Belisle, W., Sarinana, J., Brabham, K. and Garrel L.: 2001, 'Carbonaceous meteorites as a source of sugar-related organic compounds for the early Earth', Nature 414(6866), 879–883.
Cronin, J. R. and Moore, C. B.: 1971, 'Amino acid analyses of the Murchison, Murray, and Allende carbonaceous chondrites', Science 172, 1327–1329.
Cronin, J. R. and Pizzarello, S.: 1983, 'Amino acids in meteorites', Adv. Space Res. 3(9), 5–18.
DeDuve, C.: 1998, 'Possible Starts for Primitive Life. Clues from Present-day Biologie: The Thioester World', in A. Brack (ed.), The Molecular Origins of Life: Assembling Pieces of the Puzzle, Cambridge University Press, pp. 219–236.
Dodonova, N. Y.: 1993, 'Vacuum UV-Photophysics and photochemistry of biomolecules', J. Photochem. Photobiol. B: Biol. 18, 111–121.
Einarsson, S., Josefsson, B., Möller, P. and Sanchez, D.: 1987, 'Separation of amino acids enantiomers and chiral amines using precolumn derivatization with (+)-1-(9-fluorenyl)ethylchloroformate and reversed-phase liquid chromatography', Anal. Chem. 59, 1191–1195.
Ferris, J. P., Hill Jr., A. R., Liu, R. and Orgel, L. E.: 1996, 'Synthesis of long prebiotic oligomers on mineral surfaces (see comments)', Nature 381(6577), 59–61.
Greenberg, J. M.: 1984, 'Chemical evolution in space', Orig. Life Evol. Biosph. 14, 25.
Greenberg, J. M.: 1995, 'Chirality in Interstellar Dust and in Comets: Life from Dead Stars', Proceedings from the Symposium in Santa Monica, 'Physical Origin of Homochirality in Life', AIP Press.
Greenberg, J. M., Li, C., Mendoza-Gomez, C. X., Schutte, W. A., Gerakines, P. A. and De Groot, M.: 1995, 'Approaching the interstellar grain organic refractory component', ApJ 455, L177–L180.
Hénin, O.: 1998, 'Des acides aminés prébiotiques aux peptides catalytiques: Recherche d'une activité catalytique', Mémoire de Thèse, Université d'Orléans.
Heroux, L. and Hinteregger, H. E.: 1978, 'Aeronomical reference spectrum for solar UV below 2000 A', J. Geophys. Res. 83(A11), 5305–5308.
Hollis, J. M., Lovas, F. J. and Jewell, P. R.: 2000, 'Interstellar Glycolaldehyde: The first sugar', Ap. J.L. 540, L107–L110.
Horneck, G. and Brack, A.: 1992, 'Study of the origin, evolution and distibution of life with emphasis on exobiology experiments in Earth orbit', Adv. Space Biol. Med. 2, 229–262.
Horneck, G., Rettberg, P., Rabbow, E., Strauch, W., Seckmeyer, G., Facius, R., Reitz, G., Strauch, K. and Schott, J.-U.: 1996, 'Biological dosimetry of solar radiation for different simulated ozone column thicknesses', J. Photochem. Photobiol. B: Biol. 32, 189–196.
Huber, C. and Wächtershauser, G.: 1997, 'Activated acetic acid by carbon fixation on (FE, Ni)S under primordial conditions', Science 276, 245–247.
Huber, C. and Wächtershauser, G.: 1998, 'Peptides by activation of amino acids with CO on (Ni, Fe)S surfaces: Implications for the origin of Life', Science 281, 670–672.
Inagaki, I.: 1973, 'Optical absorptions of aliphatic amino acids in the far ultraviolet', Biopolymers 12, 1353–1362.
Jarosewich, E.: 1990, 'Chemical analyses of meteorites: A compilation of stony and iron meteorite analyses', Meteoritics 25, 323–337.
Johns, R. B., Looney, F. D. and Whelan, D. J.: 1967, 'Photochemistry of biological molecules-I. Photolysis of amino acids in the solid state', Biochim. Biophys. Acta 147, 369–380.
Johns, R. B., Looney, F. D. and Whelan, D. J.: 1968, 'Photochemistry of biological molecules-II. Photolysis of dipeptides in the solid state', Photochem. Photobiol. 7, 65–72.
Johns, R. B. and Seuret, M. G.: 1970, 'Photochemistry of biological molecules-III. Mechanism of photodamage of alanine peptides in the solid state', Photochem. Photobiol. 12, 405–417.
Johns, R. B. and Seuret, M. G.: 1972, 'Photochemistry of biological molecules-IV. Gaseous products from the photolysis of alanine peptides in the solid state', Photochem. Photobiol. 16, 413–424.
Jungclaus, G., Cronin, J. R., Moore, C. B. and Yuen, G. U.: 1976, 'Aliphatic amines in theMurchison meteorite', Nature 261, 126–128.
Jurewicz, A. J. G., Mittlefehldt, D. W. and Jones, J. H.: 1991, 'Partial melting of the Allende (CV3) meteorite: Implications for the origins of basaltic meteorites', Science 252, 695–698.
Keniry, M. A., Kintanar, A., Smith, R. L., Gutowsky, H. S. and Oldfield, E.: 1984, 'Nuclear magnetic resonance studies of amino acids and proteins. Deuterium nuclear magnetic resonance relaxation of deuteriomethyl-labeled amino acids in crystals and in Halobacterium halobium and Escherichia coli cell membranes', Biochemistry 23(2), 288–98.
Kvenvolden, K., Lawless, J., Pering, K., Peterson, E., Flores, J., Ponnamperuma, C., Kaplan, I. R. and Moore, C.: 1970, 'Evidence for extraterrestrial amino-acids and hydrocarbons in the Murchison meteorite', Nature 228, 923–926.
Kvenvolden, K. A., Lawless, J. G. and Ponnamperuma, C.: 1971, 'Nonprotein amino acids in the Murchison meteorite', Proc. Nat. Acad. Sci. U.S.A. 68(2), 486–490.
Love, S. G. and Brownlee, D.: 1993, 'A direct measurement of the terrestrial mass accretion rate of cosmic dust', Science 262, 550–553.
Maurette, M.: 1998, 'Carbonaceous micrometeorites and the origin of life', Orig. Life Evol. Biosph. 28(4-6), 385–412.
McMillin C. R., Rippon W. B. and Walton A. G.: 1973, 'Vacuum ultraviolet spectroscopy of poly-?-amino acids', Biopolymers 12, 589–597.
Mecherikunnel, A. T.: 1996, 'Solar total irradiance observations from spacecraft: 1992-1993', J. Geophys. Res. 101(A8), 17,073–17,079.
Nicolet, M.: 1989, 'Solar spectral irradiances with their diversity between 120 and 900 nm', Planet. Space Sci. 37(10), 1249–1289.
Nikogosyan, D. N. and Görner, H.: 1992, 'Photolysis of aromatic amino acids in aqueous solution by nanosecond 248 and 193 nm laser light', J. Photochem. Photobiol. B: Biol. 13, 219–234.
Nikogosyan, D. N. and Görner, H.: 1995, 'Photolysis (193 nm) of aliphatic amino acids in aqueous solution', J. Photochem. Photobiol. B: Biol. 30, 189–193.
Oro, J.: 1996, 'Comets and Life on the Primitive Earth. Astronomical and Biochemical Origins and the Search for Life in the Universe', C. B. Cosmovici, S. Bowyer and D. Werthimer (eds), Proceedings of the 5th International Conference on Bioastronomy IAU Colloquim No. 161, pp. 97–120.
Oro, J., Gibert, J., Lichtenstein, H., Wikstrom, S. and Flory, D. A.: 1971, 'Amino-acids, aliphatic and aromatic hydrocarbons in the Murchison meteorite', Nature 230, 105–106.
Paecht-Horowitz, M.: 1977, 'The mechanism of clay catalyzed polymerization of amino acid adenylates', Biosystems 9, 93–98.
Paecht-Horowitz, M. and Lahav, N.: 1977, 'Polymerization of alanine in the presence of a nonswelling montmorillonite', J. Mol. Evol. 10, 73–76.
Pizzarello, S. and Cronin, J. R.: 2000, 'Non-racemic amino-acids in the Murray and Murchison meteorites', Geochim. Cosmochim. Acta 64(2), 329–338.
Reber, C. A., McNeal, C. A., Trevathan, C. E. and Luther, M. R.: 1993, 'The Upper Atmosphere Research Satellite (UARS) mission', J. Geophys. Res. 98(D6), 10,643–10,647.
Stevenson, F. J. and Cheng, C.-N.: 1970, 'Amino acids in sediments. Recovery by acid hydrolysis and quantitative estimation by a colorimetric procedure', Geochim. Cosmochim. Acta 34, 77–88.
Stoks, P. and Schwartz, A. W.: 1981, 'Nitrogen-heterocyclic compounds in meteorites: significance and mechanisms of formation', Geochim. Cosmochim. Acta 45, 563–569.
Wang, R., Liu, H., Carducci, M. D., Jin, T., Zheng, C. and Zheng, Z.: 2001, 'Lanthanide coordination with alpha-amino acids under near physiological pH conditions: Polymetallic complexes containing the cubane-like [Ln4(mu3-OH)4]8 + cluster core', Inorg. Chem. 40(12), 2743–2750.
Author information
Authors and Affiliations
Corresponding author
Rights and permissions
About this article
Cite this article
Boillot, F., Chabin, A., Buré, C. et al. The Perseus Exobiology Mission on MIR Behaviour of Amino Acids and Peptides in Earth Orbit. Orig Life Evol Biosph 32, 359–385 (2002). https://doi.org/10.1023/A:1020501226958
Issue Date:
DOI: https://doi.org/10.1023/A:1020501226958