Key building blocks of DNA that have never been found before in meteorite samples on Earth have recently been discovered by scientists from NASA’s international research team. This suggests that about four billion years ago, life on our planet could have originated due to the information components that are part of the asteroids that once fell to Earth. The study is published in the journal Nature Communications.
We are talking about cytosine and thymine. These are the nucleotides that are used in the formation of DNA and RNA. For example, DNA is made up of four basic building blocks (nitrogenous bases): adenine (A), thymine (T), cytosine (C), and guanine (G). RNA also uses A, C, and G, but contains uracil (U) instead of thymine. Scientists who have wondered whether meteorites could have delivered these components to Earth have previously found only A and G compounds in space rock samples, not T, C or U.
For a long time it remained a mystery why some bases are found in meteorites, while others are not. Previous laboratory experiments simulating conditions in outer space have shown that all of the major elements could have formed during chemical reactions, and then these compounds were incorporated into asteroids and meteorites during the formation of the solar system. Such chemical reactions could also take place directly inside space rocks. Now, however, scientists have found all the nitrogenous bases in the DNA and RNA of meteorites that hit Earth. It is possible that they contributed to the emergence of genetic functions before the emergence of life on our planet.
The researchers used state-of-the-art analytical techniques, originally designed for genetic and pharmaceutical research, to detect tiny amounts of nitrogenous bases – at a concentration of a few parts per billion. The reason why cytosine and thymine were not previously detected, scientists attribute to the finer structure of these elements, which is destroyed when samples are removed. This time, they used cold water instead of hot formic (methane) acid to dissolve the meteorites. In addition to the crucial compounds T, C, and U, scientists have also found other pyrimidine compounds not used in DNA or RNA, further supporting the ability of meteorites to carry these nitrogenous bases.
Source: Trash Box
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