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A possible prebiotic synthesis of purine, adenine, cytosine, and 4(3H)-pyrimidinone from formamide: implications for the origin of life

The synthesis of prebiotic molecules is a major problem in chemical evolution as well as in any origin-of-life theory. We report here a plausible new prebiotic synthesis of naturally occurring purine and pyrimidine derivatives from formamide under catalytic conditions. In the presence of CaCO 3 and...

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Bibliographic Details
Published in:Bioorganic & medicinal chemistry 2001-05, Vol.9 (5), p.1249-1253
Main Authors: Saladino, Raffaele, Crestini, Claudia, Costanzo, Giovanna, Negri, Rodolfo, Di Mauro, Ernesto
Format: Article
Language:English
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Summary:The synthesis of prebiotic molecules is a major problem in chemical evolution as well as in any origin-of-life theory. We report here a plausible new prebiotic synthesis of naturally occurring purine and pyrimidine derivatives from formamide under catalytic conditions. In the presence of CaCO 3 and different inorganic oxides, namely silica, alumine, kaolin, and zeolite (Y type), neat formamide undergoes the formation of purine, adenine, cytosine, and 4(3H)-pyrimidinone, from acceptable to good yields. The role of catalysts showed to be not limited to the improvement of the yield but it is also relevant in providing a high selectivity in the products distribution. Graphic
ISSN:0968-0896
1464-3391
DOI:10.1016/S0968-0896(00)00340-0