Todd Zoe R
Department of Earth and Space Sciences, University of Washington, Seattle, WA 98195, USA.
Life (Basel). 2022 Aug 19;12(8):1268. doi: 10.3390/life12081268.
Biochemistry on Earth makes use of the key elements carbon, hydrogen, oxygen, nitrogen, phosphorus, and sulfur (or CHONPS). Chemically accessible molecules containing these key elements would presumably have been necessary for prebiotic chemistry and the origins of life on Earth. For example, feedstock molecules including fixed nitrogen (e.g., ammonia, nitrite, nitrate), accessible forms of phosphorus (e.g., phosphate, phosphite, etc.), and sources of sulfur (e.g., sulfide, sulfite) may have been necessary for the origins of life, given the biochemistry seen in Earth life today. This review describes potential sources of nitrogen-, sulfur-, and phosphorus-containing molecules in the context of planetary environments. For the early Earth, such considerations may be able to aid in the understanding of our own origins. Additionally, as we learn more about potential environments on other planets (for example, with upcoming next-generation telescope observations or new missions to explore other bodies in our Solar System), evaluating potential sources for elements necessary for life (as we know it) can help constrain the potential habitability of these worlds.
地球上的生物化学利用关键元素碳、氢、氧、氮、磷和硫（即CHONPS）。含有这些关键元素且化学性质上易于获取的分子，可能是前生物化学以及地球生命起源所必需的。例如，鉴于当今地球生命中所见的生物化学现象，包括固定氮（如氨、亚硝酸盐、硝酸盐）、可获取形式的磷（如磷酸盐、亚磷酸盐等）以及硫源（如硫化物、亚硫酸盐）在内的原料分子，可能是生命起源所必需的。本综述描述了行星环境中含氮、含硫和含磷分子的潜在来源。对于早期地球而言，此类考量或许有助于我们理解自身的起源。此外，随着我们对其他行星上潜在环境的了解日益增多（例如，借助即将开展的下一代望远镜观测或探索太阳系其他天体的新任务），评估（我们所知的）生命所需元素的潜在来源，有助于限制这些世界的潜在宜居性。
