Sprecher
Beschreibung
Prebiotic synthesis of complex organic molecules in water-rich environments remains a challenge. However, recent observations of liquid CO₂ in the deep sea suggest the presence of benthic CO₂ pools, prompting a new hypothesis that a liquid/supercritical CO₂ (ScCO₂)-water two-phase system could enable condensation reactions by mimicking dry conditions. To test this, we conducted nucleoside phosphorylation reactions in hydrothermal reactor simulating this environment. As a result various phosphorylated products including nucleoside monophosphates (5’-NMPs, 3’-NMPs, etc), nucleoside diphosphates, and carbamoyl nucleosides—were formed, especially with the addition of urea, which enhanced 5'-NMP yields above 10%. No phosphorylation occurred in a purely aqueous system, confirming the role of ScCO₂. Visual observation with a glass window reactor revealed water migration into the ScCO₂ phase, mimicking the drying effect seen in wet-dry cycles on land. Additionally, carbonate saturated acidic aqueous phase enabled phosphate release from hydroxyapatite at milimolar order, addressing the phosphate problem on early Earth. These findings suggest that ScCO₂-water interfaces, potentially present in deep-sea environments and on other ocean worlds, could support prebiotic phosphorylation and broader organic condensation reactions.
