CHED 757 |
| Ever since Pasteur noticed that tartrate crystals exist in two non-superimposable forms that are mirror images of one another, the phenomenon of chirality has intrigued scientists. Chiral molecules present in nature as part of living organisms are most often produced exclusively in one enantiomeric form. This homochirality is critical for molecular recognition and replication processes and would thus seem to be a prerequisite for the origin of life. Several models have been put forward to explain the emergence of biological homochirality from a presumably racemic prebiotic world. Here, a mechanism based on the phase behavior of chiral amino acids is presented, which can operate in aqueous systems and in equilibrium, making it a robust and likely model for the prebiotic soup. |
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Chemical Evolution from Origins of Life to Modern Society
1:30 PM-4:55 PM, Monday, April 7, 2008 Hilton New Orleans Riverside -- Jasperwood, Oral
Division of Chemical Education |