Scripps Institution of Oceanography, University of California at San Diego, La Jolla, CA 92093-0212, USA.
Chem Soc Rev. 2013 Mar 7;42(5):2186-96. doi: 10.1039/c3cs35433d. Epub 2013 Jan 22.
1953 was a banner year for biological chemistry: The double helix structure of DNA was published by Watson and Crick, Sanger's group announced the first amino acid sequence of a protein (insulin) and the synthesis of key biomolecules using simulated primordial Earth conditions has demonstrated by Miller. Miller's studies in particular transformed the study of the origin of life into a respectable field of inquiry and established the basis of prebiotic chemistry, a field of research that investigates how the components of life as we know it can be formed in a variety of cosmogeochemical environments. In this review, I cover the continued advances in prebiotic syntheses that Miller's pioneering work has inspired. The main focus is on recent state-of-the-art analyses carried out on archived samples of Miller's original experiments, some of which had never before been analyzed, discovered in his laboratory material just before his death in May 2007. One experiment utilized a reducing gas mixture and an apparatus configuration (referred to here as the "volcanic" apparatus) that could represent a water-rich volcanic eruption accompanied by lightning. Another included H(2)S as a component of the reducing gas mixture. Compared to the limited number of amino acids Miller identified, these new analyses have found that over 40 different amino acids and amines were synthesized, demonstrating the potential robust formation of important biologic compounds under possible cosmogeochemical conditions. These experiments are suggested to simulate long-lived volcanic island arc systems, an environment that could have provided a stable environment for some of the processes thought to be involved in chemical evolution and the origin of life. Some of the alternatives to the Miller-based prebiotic synthesis and the "primordial soup" paradigm are evaluated in the context of their relevance under plausible planetary conditions.
1953 年是生物化学的辉煌一年：沃森和克里克发表了 DNA 的双螺旋结构，桑格小组宣布了第一个蛋白质（胰岛素）的氨基酸序列，米勒用模拟原始地球条件的方法合成了关键的生物分子。特别是米勒的研究将生命起源的研究转变为一个受人尊敬的探究领域，并为前生物化学奠定了基础，这是一个研究我们所知的生命组成部分如何在各种宇宙地球化学环境中形成的研究领域。在这篇综述中，我介绍了米勒开创性工作所激发的前生物合成的持续进展。主要重点是对米勒原始实验存档样本进行的最新最先进的分析，其中一些样本从未进行过分析，是在他于 2007 年 5 月去世前在他的实验室材料中发现的。一个实验利用了还原气体混合物和一种仪器配置（这里称为“火山”仪器），可以代表富水的火山喷发伴随着闪电。另一个实验包括 H(2)S 作为还原气体混合物的一个组成部分。与米勒鉴定的有限数量的氨基酸相比，这些新的分析发现，超过 40 种不同的氨基酸和胺被合成，证明了在可能的宇宙地球化学条件下，重要生物化合物形成的潜在稳健性。这些实验被认为可以模拟长期存在的火山岛弧系统，这是一个可能为被认为涉及化学进化和生命起源的某些过程提供稳定环境的环境。在可能的行星条件下，根据它们的相关性，对基于米勒的前生物合成和“原始汤”范式的替代方案进行了评估。
