[Photochemical formation of pyruvic acid in a solution of acetaldehyde and ammonium nitrate].

It has been demonstrated that UV irradiation of acetaldehyde (2.5%) and ammonium nitrate (1.5%) solutions results in the synthesis of the pyruvic acid (PA). With the increase in the duration of irradiation, the yield of the produced PA decreases which is associated both with its photolysis and with its further transformations, for instance, into amino acids. The results obtained are discussed in relation to abiogenic synthesis of biologically important compounds in prebiological evolution and to possible development of metabolic pathways which are found in contemporary organisms.