Origins of Life and Evolution of Biospheres

, Volume 47, Issue 4, pp 413–425 | Cite as

Prebiotic Synthesis of Glycine from Ethanolamine in Simulated Archean Alkaline Hydrothermal Vents

  • Xianlong Zhang
  • Ge Tian
  • Jing Gao
  • Mei Han
  • Rui Su
  • Yanxiang Wang
  • Shouhua Feng
Prebiotic Chemistry
First Online:
Received:
Accepted:

Abstract

Submarine hydrothermal vents are generally considered as the likely habitats for the origin and evolution of early life on Earth. In recent years, a novel hydrothermal system in Archean subseafloor has been proposed. In this model, highly alkaline and high temperature hydrothermal fluids were generated in basalt-hosted hydrothermal vents, where H2 and CO2 could be abundantly provided. These extreme conditions could have played an irreplaceable role in the early evolution of life. Nevertheless, sufficient information has not yet been obtained for the abiotic synthesis of amino acids, which are indispensable components of life, at high temperature and alkaline condition. This study aims to propose a new method for the synthesis of glycine in simulated Archean submarine alkaline vent systems. We investigated the formation of glycine from ethanolamine under conditions of high temperature (80–160 °C) and highly alkaline solutions (pH = 9.70). Experiments were performed in an anaerobic environment under mild pressure (0.1–8.0 MPa) at the same time. The results suggested that the formation of glycine from ethanolamine occurred rapidly and efficiently in the presence of metal powders, and was favored by high temperatures and high pressures. The experiment provides a new pathway for prebiotic glycine formation and points out the phenomenal influence of high-temperature alkaline hydrothermal vents in origin of life in the early ocean.

Keywords

Ethanolamine Glycine Alkaline hydrothermal vents Origin of life Prebiotic chemistry 
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Notes

Acknowledgments

This work was supported by grants from the National Natural Science Foundation of China (No.21427802, 21131002, 21201075 and 20901026) and Specialized Research Fund for the Doctoral Program of Higher Education of China (SRFDP, No.20110061130005).

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Copyright information

© Springer Science+Business Media Dordrecht 2016

Authors and Affiliations

  • Xianlong Zhang
    • 1
  • Ge Tian
    • 1
  • Jing Gao
    • 1
  • Mei Han
    • 1
  • Rui Su
    • 1
  • Yanxiang Wang
    • 1
  • Shouhua Feng
    • 1
  1. 1.State Key Laboratory of Inorganic Synthesis and Preparative Chemistry, College of ChemistryJilin UniversityChangchunPeople’s Republic of China

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