. 24/7 Space News .
EXO WORLDS
First detection of sugars in meteorites gives clues to origin of life
by Staff Writers
Greenbelt MD (SPX) Nov 20, 2019

This is a model of the molecular structure of ribose and an image of the Murchison meteorite. Ribose and other sugars were found in this meteorite.

An international team has found sugars essential to life in meteorites. The new discovery adds to the growing list of biologically important compounds that have been found in meteorites, supporting the hypothesis that chemical reactions in asteroids - the parent bodies of many meteorites - can make some of life's ingredients. If correct, meteorite bombardment on ancient Earth may have assisted the origin of life with a supply of life's building blocks.

The team discovered ribose and other bio-essential sugars including arabinose and xylose in two different meteorites that are rich in carbon, NWA 801 (type CR2) and Murchison (type CM2). Ribose is a crucial component of RNA (ribonucleic acid). In much of modern life, RNA serves as a messenger molecule, copying genetic instructions from the DNA molecule (deoxyribonucleic acid) and delivering them to molecular factories within the cell called ribosomes that read the RNA to build specific proteins needed to carry out life processes.

"Other important building blocks of life have been found in meteorites previously, including amino acids (components of proteins) and nucleobases (components of DNA and RNA), but sugars have been a missing piece among the major building blocks of life," said Yoshihiro Furukawa of Tohoku University, Japan, lead author of the study published in the Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences November 18.

"The research provides the first direct evidence of ribose in space and the delivery of the sugar to Earth. The extraterrestrial sugar might have contributed to the formation of RNA on the prebiotic Earth which possibly led to the origin of life."

"It is remarkable that a molecule as fragile as ribose could be detected in such ancient material," said Jason Dworkin, a co-author of the study at NASA's Goddard Space Flight Center in Greenbelt, Maryland. "These results will help guide our analyses of pristine samples from primitive asteroids Ryugu and Bennu, to be returned by the Japan Aerospace Exploration Agency's Hayabusa2 and NASA's OSIRIS-REx spacecraft."

An enduring mystery regarding the origin of life is how biology could have arisen from non-biological chemical processes. DNA is the template for life, carrying the instructions for how to build and operate a living organism. However, RNA also carries information, and many researchers think it evolved first and was later replaced by DNA.

This is because RNA molecules have capabilities that DNA lacks. RNA can make copies of itself without "help" from other molecules, and it can also initiate or speed up chemical reactions as a catalyst. The new work gives some evidence to support the possibility that RNA coordinated the machinery of life before DNA.

"The sugar in DNA (2-deoxyribose) was not detected in any of the meteorites analyzed in this study," said Danny Glavin, a co-author of the study at NASA Goddard. "This is important since there could have been a delivery bias of extraterrestrial ribose to the early Earth which is consistent with the hypothesis that RNA evolved first."

The team discovered the sugars by analyzing powdered samples of the meteorites using gas chromatography mass spectrometry, which sorts and identifies molecules by their mass and electric charge. They found that the abundances of ribose and the other sugars ranged from 2.3 to 11 parts per billion in NWA 801 and from 6.7 to 180 parts per billion in Murchison.

Since Earth is awash with life, the team had to consider the possibility that the sugars in the meteorites simply came from contamination by terrestrial life. Multiple lines of evidence indicate contamination is unlikely, including isotope analysis. Isotopes are versions of an element with different mass due to the number of neutrons in the atomic nucleus.

For example, life on Earth prefers to use the lighter variety of carbon (12C) over the heavier version (13C). However, the carbon in the meteorite sugars was significantly enriched in the heavy 13C, beyond the amount seen in terrestrial biology, supporting the conclusion that it came from space.

The team plans to analyze more meteorites to get a better idea of the abundance of the extraterrestrial sugars. They also plan to see if the extraterrestrial sugar molecules have a left-handed or right-handed bias. Some molecules come in two varieties that are mirror images of each other, like your hands. On Earth, life uses left-handed amino acids and right-handed sugars.

Since it's possible that the opposite would work fine - right-handed amino acids and left-handed sugars - scientists want to know where this preference came from. If some process in asteroids favors the production of one variety over the other, then maybe the supply from space via meteorite impacts made that variety more abundant on ancient Earth, which made it more likely that life would end up using it.

The research was funded by a Japan Society for the Promotion of Science KAKENHI (science grant), the National Institutes of Natural Sciences Astrobiology Center, Japan, the Institute of Low Temperature Science, Hokkaido University, the Simons Foundation, and the NASA Astrobiology Institute, Goddard Center for Astrobiology. Jason Dworkin and Danny Glavin are members of the Goddard Center for Astrobiology team.

Research paper


Related Links
Goddard Center for Astrobiology
Lands Beyond Beyond - extra solar planets - news and science
Life Beyond Earth


Thanks for being there;
We need your help. The SpaceDaily news network continues to grow but revenues have never been harder to maintain.

With the rise of Ad Blockers, and Facebook - our traditional revenue sources via quality network advertising continues to decline. And unlike so many other news sites, we don't have a paywall - with those annoying usernames and passwords.

Our news coverage takes time and effort to publish 365 days a year.

If you find our news sites informative and useful then please consider becoming a regular supporter or for now make a one off contribution.
SpaceDaily Monthly Supporter
$5+ Billed Monthly


paypal only
SpaceDaily Contributor
$5 Billed Once


credit card or paypal


EXO WORLDS
Life on Venus and the interplanetary transfer of biota from Earth
Los Angeles CA (SPX) Nov 11, 2019
For thousands of years humans have gazed into darkness of night, wondering, "Are we alone? Is there life on other planets?" According to Dr. Rhawn Joseph in research published yesterday in the Nature/Springer journal, "Astrophysics and Space Science," the answer is "Yes, there is life on other worlds. However, our neighbors are not human, but mushroom-shaped fungi dwelling on the surface of Venus and Mars." Life on Venus? Is that possible? Dozens of scientists think so, including Carl Sagan and fo ... read more

Comment using your Disqus, Facebook, Google or Twitter login.



Share this article via these popular social media networks
del.icio.usdel.icio.us DiggDigg RedditReddit GoogleGoogle

EXO WORLDS
Audit criticizes NASA for payments to Boeing in human spaceflight program

NASA overpaid Boeing by hundreds of millions of dollars: auditor

US has paid Russia 4 billion dollars to transport astronauts to ISS

Stand-up scientists use comedy to reach beyond the ivory tower

EXO WORLDS
Roscosmos creates rocket-monitoring system using technology found in smart homes

China sends five satellites into orbit via single rocket

SpaceX Crew Dragon releases photos of emergency escape engines test

Arianespace will orbit TIBA-1 and Inmarsat GX5 with Ariane 5

EXO WORLDS
Human Missions to Mars

Mars scientists investigate ancient life in Australia

China completes Mars lander test ahead of 2020 mission

At future Mars landing spot, scientists spy mineral that could preserve signs of past life

EXO WORLDS
China plans to complete space station construction around 2022: expert

China conducts hovering and obstacle avoidance test in public for first Mars lander mission

Beijing eyes creating first Earth-Moon economic zone

China conducts simulated weightlessness experiment for long-term stay in space

EXO WORLDS
China sends two global multimedia satellites into planned orbit

Tesla Completes Acquisition of Maxwell Technologies

Space Talks 2019: bringing space to you

EU must boost spending in space or be squeezed out: experts

EXO WORLDS
Headwall and geo-konzept Announce Hyperspectral Remote-Sensing Center in Europe

Amazon says 'bias' in Pentagon awarding $10 bn contract to Microsoft

Amazon says 'bias' in Pentagon awarding $10 bn contract to Microsoft

Multimaterial 3D printing manufactures complex objects, fast

EXO WORLDS
Making planets in a rocket

Scientists use 3D climate model to narrow search for habitable exoplanets

Distant worlds under many suns

Study refines which exoplanets are potentially habitable

EXO WORLDS
NASA finds Neptune moons locked in 'Dance of Avoidance'

NASA scientists confirm water vapor on Europa

New Horizons Kuiper Belt Flyby object officially named 'Arrokoth'

NASA renames faraway ice world 'Arrokoth' after backlash









The content herein, unless otherwise known to be public domain, are Copyright 1995-2024 - Space Media Network. All websites are published in Australia and are solely subject to Australian law and governed by Fair Use principals for news reporting and research purposes. AFP, UPI and IANS news wire stories are copyright Agence France-Presse, United Press International and Indo-Asia News Service. ESA news reports are copyright European Space Agency. All NASA sourced material is public domain. Additional copyrights may apply in whole or part to other bona fide parties. All articles labeled "by Staff Writers" include reports supplied to Space Media Network by industry news wires, PR agencies, corporate press officers and the like. Such articles are individually curated and edited by Space Media Network staff on the basis of the report's information value to our industry and professional readership. Advertising does not imply endorsement, agreement or approval of any opinions, statements or information provided by Space Media Network on any Web page published or hosted by Space Media Network. General Data Protection Regulation (GDPR) Statement Our advertisers use various cookies and the like to deliver the best ad banner available at one time. All network advertising suppliers have GDPR policies (Legitimate Interest) that conform with EU regulations for data collection. By using our websites you consent to cookie based advertising. If you do not agree with this then you must stop using the websites from May 25, 2018. Privacy Statement. Additional information can be found here at About Us.