Sprecher
Beschreibung
UV light has been postulated as a potential energy source for driving prebiotic chemistry on the early Earth. Here, we investigate the influence of UV light on nucelobases/sides and further study the interactions of UV light and lipid vesicles. It has been suggested previously that the canonical nucleobases used by life today may have been selected due to their enhanced photostability, based on the evidence from their excited state lifetimes (Beckstead et al. 2016). Here, we test the degradation rates of various canonical and non-canonical nucleobases and nucleosides under continuous UV irradiation to determine their relative photostabilities. We further test if encapsulation by lipid membranes can help protect UV sensitive molecules from photodegradation. When a UV photon impinges upon a lipid protocell, the photon could either be absorbed, scattered, or transmitted to the interior. Here, we attempt to understand if encapsulation inside lipid protocells could provide any protective effect. We probe the influence of parameters including lipid composition and size of the protocells. From these efforts, we can improve our understanding of the potential role of UV light in various aspects of prebiotic chemistry.
Beckstead et al. (2016) Phys Chem Chem Phys, 18, 24228-24238.
