Scientists find that synthesizing peptides without amino acids could answer the mystery of the origin of life.

Readers who are not biological professionals may be unfamiliar with the word "peptide", and here's a brief introductionWe know that proteins have a variety of important functions in life activities, and the basic component of proteins is amino acidsPeptides are also made up of amino acids, but the size is not very large, and the critical three-dimensional structure has not yet been fully formedSo, to put it simply, peptides can be considered intermediates in the process of amino acid synthesis of proteins"polypeptides are long chains of amino acids, which are key elements of all life on Earth," explains study leader Professor Matthew Powner of University College Londonfrom amino acids to peptides to protein diagrams (photo: Cc BY 3.0)Although scientists have clarified the relationship between amino acids, peptides, and proteins, a key question about the origin of life has never been resolved: the synthesis of peptides with amino acids requires the involvement of enzymes; the enzymes that lead this step are proteins; This is a classic 'chicken first, or egg first' questionProfessor Powner addedpreviously, many scientists had been studying how amino acids spontaneously form peptidesBut the conditions required for the response are extremely harsh and difficult to achieveFor the study, the team focused on aminonitriles, the precursor molecule of amino acidsThey found that these molecules are inherently reactive and can directly form peptides without first converting them into amino acidsIn other words, the researchers found a way to synthesize peptides without the need for amino acidsillustration of this study (Image Source: Supplied, 1)"This is the first convincing discovery by humans that polypeptides can be synthesized in water without the use of amino acidsThe conditions required for the reaction were not harsh and might have been found on early Earth One researcher said in addition to providing clues to the origin of life, this study also has contemporary practical application value The researchers point out that many bioactive molecules, or synthetic materials, require similar chemical reactions Under normal synthetic conditions, we need to prepare many expensive materials in advance, resulting in waste This new type of response is expected to better serve synthetic biology and bring practical application value future, scientists plan to explore more similar reactions, trying to restore the polypeptide chains that can be synthesized naturally and clarify their function Perhaps the mystery of the origin of life 4 billion years ago is already in their laboratory! References: 1, Pierre Canavelli et al., (2019), Peptide ligligation by chemoselective aminonitrile in in water, Nature, https://doi.org/10.1038/s41586-019-1371-4 2 s Origin of life insight: peptides can form without aminos, from https:// original title: refresh the awareness! Scientists discover that peptides can be synthesized without amino acids, promising to answer the mystery of the origin of life